Dubai: Ever heard of Pannalal Shakya, a MLA of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in India? Well, he has managed to grab his two minutes of fame on Tuesday when he questioned the ‘patriotism’ of Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma for deciding to get married outside the country.
Shakya, a lawmaker from Madhya Pradesh, said: “Virat earned money in India but he didn’t find any place to marry in the country. Is Hindustan untouchable? Lord Rama, Lord Krishna, Vikramaditya, Yudhishthir got married on this land. You all must have got married here. None of us goes to a foreign country to get married, he (Virat Kohli) earned money here and spent billions there (Italy), he doesn't have any respect for the country. This proves he is not a patriot.”
The celebrity couple got married at a private ceremony in Tuscany, Italy, on December 11 after keeping the media in the tenterhooks for a while.
Shakya’s comments, however, didn’t quite meet with any approval from his party hierarchy so far. S. Prakash, another BJP leader, said it was not Shakya’s business to question the cricketer’s patriotism and that he was tarnishing the party’s image by his statements.
“The MLA who made this statement has no business to question the patriotism of Virat Kohli or Anushka Sharma, it is their choice to marry where ever they wanted to get married. The MLA who has made this statement has no right to tarnish the image of the BJP and I hope he mends his ways,” said the BJP leader.