By now, it should be abundantly clear to every thinking Indian that our rogue neighbour, Pakistan, is incapable of change. For over seven decades, it has pursued relentlessly and unapologetically a doctrine of bleeding India with a thousand cuts. From sponsoring cross-border terrorism to glorifying jihad and shielding its foot soldiers, Pakistan has consistently reaffirmed its status as the global epicentre of terrorism. The recent bloodbath in Pahalgam—where 24 innocent tourists were gunned down by The Resistance Front (TRF), a Lashkar-e-Toiba proxy—is not an isolated tragedy. It is part of a playbook. A pattern. State-sponsored barbarism disguised as ideology. Yet, even as the ashes of Pahalgam smoulder and bereaved families struggle to make sense of their loss, we are being asked to play cricket with Pakistan. Why? Because the Asia Cup must go on? Because sport is somehow above politics? No. Not anymore. It’s time to call this bluff. The pious argument that “sport must rise above politics” collapses under the sheer weight of Pakistani duplicity. Terrorism is not politics. It is war by other means. And no civilised nation plays games with those who slaughter its citizens—especially when those citizens are unarmed pilgrims, women, and children on a peaceful holiday in their own homeland. The anger in India is real, raw, and righteous. After the Pahalgam massacre, the government’s swift retaliation through Operation Sindoor sparked a flicker of hope—that, this time, there would be no compromise. But that hope was short-lived. The operation was paused midway, reportedly after Pakistan pleaded for a reprieve following the destruction of nine of its airbases and an equal number of terror camps, including the headquarters of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed. And now, to add insult to injury, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is gearing up to host the Asia Cup, with Pakistan in attendance, albeit at a so-called “neutral venue.” Even more galling is the fact that Congress MP and BCCI Vice President Rajiv Shukla reportedly attended the Asian Cricket Council meeting virtually to discuss this arrangement. That alone is reprehensible. He should be shown the door. This is not neutrality. This is capitulation. This is tone-deafness of the highest order.
The BCCI must remember that it is no longer an island unto itself. It now falls under the purview of the national sports policy. It cannot behave like a private fiefdom, insulated from national sentiment. Cricket may be religion in this country, but Indians do not want to see their cricketing idols sharing the field with terrorists’ enablers. The so-called ‘cricket diplomacy’ has failed repeatedly. Every time we extended a handshake, Pakistan responded with a hand grenade. Moreover, the global optics are no better. Even as Washington hosts Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir for breakfast at the White House—an act that reeks of hypocrisy—the same U.S. administration goes on to designate TRF as a global terror outfit. The contradiction is galling. But while America may suffer from chronic geopolitical amnesia, we cannot afford to. India must set its own moral compass. We must draw red lines that cannot be crossed—not by enemies, not by allies, not even by apolitical sporting bodies. Our soldiers are dying on the borders, our civilians are being slaughtered in temples and tourist buses, and yet we’re expected to bowl overs and shake hands in the name of brotherhood? Enough is enough. Let there be no doubt: The 140-crore people of India are watching. They are seething. And if BCCI still insists on hosting the Asia Cup or playing against Pakistan in any form, they will have to answer to the very people whose collective conscience they seem eager to ignore. The Indian government, too, must not dither. It should step in with moral clarity and strategic firmness: No cricket with Pakistan. No hosting. No participation. Let them play alone. There is no honour in entertaining a nation that has made hate its national currency. There is no pride in sporting friendship with an enemy that thrives on Indian blood. Say no to Pakistan—on the field, at the border, and in our hearts. Let us not forget. Let us not forgive.
