Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed stirred controversy on Wednesday after questioning whether Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan was excluded from the India A squad “because of his surname.”
Political Row Erupts Over Shama Mohamed’s Remarks
In her post on X, Mohamed also appeared to take a dig at Team India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir, writing, “Is Sarfaraz Khan not selected because of his surname! #justasking. We know where Gautam Gambhir stands on that matter.”
Her comments drew sharp criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla accused Mohamed of injecting communal politics into sports, saying, “This lady and her party are sick. After calling Rohit Sharma fat, she now wants to divide even our cricket team on communal lines? Desh ka partition karke mann nahi bhara kya?” He also pointed out that Muslim players like Mohammed Siraj and Khaleel Ahmed are part of the same team, urging her to “stop dividing India on communal and caste lines.”
When India A announced their squads for two first-class matches against South Africa A, both to be led by Rishabh Pant, the controversy had arisen. Sarfaraz Khan, 28, who had not only brought about a major fitness transformation but also had been performing consistently, was once again dropped from the squad, resulting in an uproar of fans on social media questioning the selectors’ decision.
It's not the first time Mohamed has gotten in trouble because of her cricket-related comments. In March, she was criticized, and the Congress party, to which she belongs, reprimanded her after she made a fat-shaming joke about the then India captain Rohit Sharma and later deleted her post in which she described him as "fat for a sportsman".
