"Why does the PM feel the need to hold a cricket match with Pakistan?": Arvind Kejriwal blasts Centre

New Delhi [India], September 13 (ANI): Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has slammed the Modi government for allowing a cricket match with Pakistan despite heightened tensions between the two countries, pointing out that the Prime Minister has bowed to external pressure.
According to a release, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal took to X and asked, "Why does the Prime Minister feel the need to hold a cricket match with Pakistan. The entire nation is saying this match should not take place. Then why is it being organised? Is this also being done under Trump's pressure? How much more will the Prime Minister bend before Trump?"

प्रधान मंत्री जी को पाकिस्तान के साथ मैच करवाने की आख़िर क्या ज़रूरत है? सारा देश कह रहा है कि ये मैच नहीं होना चाहिए। फिर ये मैच क्यों करवाया जा रहा है?

क्या ये भी ट्रम्प के दबाव में किया जा रहा है? आख़िर ट्रम्प के आगे कितना झुकोगे? https://t.co/Wy8LPOBlHE

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) September 13, 2025

Meanwhile, senior AAP leader and Punjab Prabhari Manish Sisodia wrote, "Prime Minister, since when has the craze for cricket become bigger than the blood of our martyrs? When the sindoor of our sisters has been wiped away, what is the need to hold a match with Pakistan?"
AAP MLA from Burari, Sanjeev Jha, emphasised that the Aam Aadmi Party strongly opposes the India-Pakistan cricket match.
"Pakistani players have posted objectionable images on their Instagram accounts, mocking our sisters and disrespecting our national dignity. These images show the Pakistani Army Chief applying sindoor--a symbol of marital bliss--to our sisters. Can we play cricket with people who disrespect us in such a manner?" Jha said.
Sanjeev Jha questioned the silence of leaders in the ICC and BCCI, asking, "Will those in power tolerate such disrespect towards their own sisters? We will not. That is why we are protesting. We demand that this match be stopped immediately."
He criticized the BJP, saying, "Those who claim to be nationalists are silent today. What is the hidden agenda here? If the price is right, these people are ready to sell the country."
Addressing the central government, Sanjeev Jha urged, "The people of this country are angry. We do not want this match to be played for the sake of earning billions. Wherever large screens are set up to broadcast the match, we will expose those responsible. I appeal to all clubs: if you love this country, if you have even an ounce of patriotism, do not screen this match. We will not allow this to become a business at the cost of our national pride."
Meanwhile, AAP MLA from Kondli Kuldeep Kumar asserted that those who have disrespected our "sisters and spilled the blood of our citizens do not deserve to play against us", whether in India or Dubai.
"Our patriotism will not allow it," he declared.
"We have made our party's stance by burning an effigy of the Pakistani team at the party office. We have made it clear: bloodshed and cricket cannot coexist. Those who have disrespected our sisters and spilled the blood of our citizens do not deserve to play against us--whether in India or Dubai. Our patriotism will not allow it," he declared.
Kuldeep Kumar pointed out the BJP's hypocrisy, stating, "The BJP must end its double standards. We cannot play with those who have killed our people, neither in India nor abroad. The government must recall our team immediately."
He warned of nationwide protests if the match proceeds, saying, "The youth and cricket lovers of this country are furious. They know that bloodshed and cricket cannot go hand in hand. If this match is allowed to happen, there will be protests across the nation."
Kuldeep Kumar also appealed to the BCCI, urging them to withdraw the Indian team from the match. He called on Indian cricketers, who are revered like gods, to boycott the match, saying, "You cannot play with those who have taken the lives of 26 of our people. It is time to stand with the nation." (ANI)