The ongoing fake farmers’ protests flushed out a lot of sympathisers for Khalistani terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. As a cause of concern, even prominent names in the country are dropping their masks and displaying their love for the terrorist. On the anniversary of Operation Blue Star, cricketer Harbhajan Singh posted a story on Instagram which not only glorified Bhindranwale but also dubbed him as a ‘martyr’. After facing a massive backlash, the off-spinner tendered an apology and distanced himself from the post.
As if publicly advocating for rabid India hater and former Pakistan Cricket Captain Shahid Afridi wasn’t enough, Harbhajan Singh went a step ahead and uploaded a poster on Instagram which glorified Khalistani terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
The Instagram story began with the caption ‘Salute to the martyrs’ and the text on the poster shared, written in Punjabi reads, “Heartfelt tribute to those martyred in Operation inside Shri Harmandir Sahib on June 1- June 6, 1984.” Make no mistake, Bhindranwale was prominently placed on the poster and impossible to miss.
https://twitter.com/MayankP44023549/status/1401732950517972992?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1401732950517972992%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftfipost.com%2F2021%2F06%2Fwith-harbhajan-singhs-exaltation-of-bhindranwale-and-his-slain-terrorist-friends-khalistani-terrorism-is-being-mainstreamed%2F
Expectedly, this created a huge furore as a former Indian cricketer was publicly advocating for a terrorist who wanted to carve out a separate country of Khalistan from India.
Sensing the outrage, Harbhajan who currently plies his trade for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League took to Twitter to tender an apology.
Singh offered a meek defence as he said, “I just wish to clarify and apologise for an Instagram post yesterday. It was a WhatsApp forward that I posted in a haste without even realising the content used and what it signified or stood for. That was my mistake I accept, and at no stage do I subscribe to the views on that post, or support the people who’s pictures were carried. I am a Sikh who will fight for India and not against India. This is my unconditional apology for hurting the sentiments of my nation. In fact any anti national group against my people, I do not support and never will.”
My heartfelt apology to my people..🙏🙏 pic.twitter.com/S44cszY7lh
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) June 7, 2021
Harbhajan concluded his apology by stating,”I have given my blood and sweat for this country for 20 years and will never ever support anything that is anti India.”
However, Harbhajan Singh was not the only cricketer who glorified Bhindranwale on the anniversary of Operation Blue Star. The upcoming cricketer who shot to fame in this year’s Indian Premier League with Punjab Kings, Harpreet Brar took to Twitter to post a quote by Bhindranwale and till the time of writing has not deleted the post or offered an apology, meaning that he subscribes to Bhindranwale’s ideology.
https://twitter.com/thisisbrar/status/1401388827688714244
What is even more unfortunate is the silence of the BCCI and their respective IPL franchisees who has seemingly turned a blind eye to this incident. It seems that “India” is missing from the Board of Cricket Control for India and the Indian Premier League.