Congress leader’s old post on Virat Kohli goes viral amid Rohit Sharma's fat-shaming row
Shama Mohamed's old post on Virat Kohli has gone viral and social media users are slamming her saying she seems to have a problem with every Indian player
Amid the row over Congress leader Shama Mohamed body-shaming Rohit Sharma, an old X post of the Congress leader, taking a dig at another former captain, Virat Kohli has gone viral.
Shama Mohamed drew the ire of cricket fans, sportspersons and political figures alike by berating and body-shaming Team India captain, Rohit Sharma and calling him "unimpressive" as a player and "fat for a sportsperson".
Watch: India vs New Zealand: Key matchups and predictions
Kohli responds to trolls
Now, an old post of the Congress leader criticising Virat Kohli has resurfaced.
In a 2018 post on X, Shama had slammed Virat Kohli, then former captain of Team India while he was embroiled in a controversy after replying to a troll. He said something to the effect that ‘those who prefer Australian and English batsmen should not live in India’.
A fan had sent him a message calling him an ‘over-rated batsman’ and said they enjoy watching English and Australian batsmen more than Indians.
Virat responded to that message saying, “I don't think you should live in India, go and live somewhere else. Why are you living in our country and loving other countries? I don't mind you not liking me, but I don't think you should live in our country and like other things. Get your priorities right.”
Also read: ‘Rohit shouldn’t be in team’: TMC MP’s remark on cricketer amid Cong leader’s swipe
Reacting to his comment, Shama Mohamed called Kohli out. However, she faced severe backlash when she posted on X, “Virat Kohli plays a British invented game, makes crores from endorsing foreign brands, got married in Italy, names Hershelle Gibbs his favorite cricketer and Angelique Kerber the best tennis player, but tells those who love foreign batsmen to leave India.”
Netizens’ response
Her old post has gone viral and social media users are slamming her saying she has a problem with every Indian player. Some users berated her, telling her that Kohli has done a lot for the country on the global sports stage.
Other users are angry for her fat-shaming comments against Rohit Sharma.
Also read: Congress leader Shama calls Rohit 'fat'; party asks her to delete post
Her posts have since been deleted at the behest of her party members, but she continued her tirade by defending her previous statements.
“This is my personal remark, don't bring my party into this. We can speak about someone's fitness, what's the issue in that? Since I am fit, I was only talking about his fitness... why are you making such a big issue out of it?” she said to reporters.
The Congress party has said that her remarks do not reflect the party’s position.
Also read: India vs Australia: Pitch has given us different challenges, says Rohit
Harbhajan Singh hits out
Meanwhile, Indian cricket legend, Harbhajan Singh, hit out at the Congress leader’s remarks.
He posted on X saying, “The controversy on [the] fitness of Rohit Sharma was unfortunate and uncalled for. He is an outstanding player and an exceptional leader who has made immense contributions to Indian cricket.”.
He added that sports persons are also humans with emotions and sentiment and that it hurts when people with ‘zero knowledge’ of the game give ‘sermons’. He ended his tweet by asking the concerned parties to, “Respect the game and respect the players.”