Dubai: Indian boxer Mary Kom has caused controversy after posing for a picture next to a waxwork figure of former Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler and posting it on her official Facebook page.
The picture, which was taken at Madame Tussauds in Hong Kong, was uploaded on Monday and had attracted nearly 200 comments, 140 shares and over 36,000 likes by Tuesday lunchtime. There was no status update to accompany the image other than the hashtags #MadameTussauds #HongKong.
Most of the comments came from bewildered fans asking her to remove the picture. Kom, 32, from Manipur, has yet to remove the picture or distance herself from the Fuhrer’s beliefs.
In the comments section below the picture, Amjad Pathan said: “No way to get proud by standing near a mass murderer.”
Peter Roshan added: “Why Hitler? Are you proud to stand with the dummy of this murderer? I wish you delete this picture immediately. The Germans would love to hate you.”
Pu-Kin Zhosa said: “With due respect, I will like to tell you that posting this picture really hurt us a lot because it seems like you are anti semitic. So, request you to please remove this picture at the earliest.”
And Ranjeet Jha added: “You are a legend of India and the champion of the world. We believe your intention is not bad but sometimes some image can hurt [people]. Please be careful with such mistakes.”
Kom won flyweight gold at last year’s Asian Games at Incheon in South Korea and will look to improve upon her London 2012 Olympic bronze medal next year at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
