A day after Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar warned cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar to be more careful while commenting on farmers' issues, Twitter has come down heavily on former BCCI chief.
Responding to comments by international celebrities on farmers' protests, Tendulkar had said India's sovereignty cannot be compromised and external forces can be spectators, but not participants. "India's sovereignty cannot be compromised. External forces can be spectators but not participants. Indians know India and should decide for India. Let's remain united as a nation. #IndiaTogether #IndiaAgainstPropaganda," Tendulkar had tweeted on Wednesday.
When asked about celebrities like Sachin Tendulkar and Lata Mangeshkar reacting to the ongoing agitation by farmers against the three new farm laws at the borders of Delhi, the NCP chief said that people had already reacted strongly to them. "Many people (celebrities) have reacted sharply to the stand taken by them (farmers). My suggestion to Sachin Tendulkar is he should be cautious while commenting on fields other than his domain," Pawar told reporters on Saturday.
Pawar's statement did not go down well with netizens, who slammed Pawar and mocked him for asking Tendulkar to exercise caution while speaking on farmers' issues.
Here's what netizens had to say:
Meanwhile, Pawar also said if senior leaders like the Prime Minister, Defence Minister and Nitin Gadkari come forward and speak with agitating farmers, a solution can be found. "If senior leaders take initiative, farmer leaders also need to sit with them," he said.
"Since independence, it has never happened that protesters are stopped by putting nails on the streets. Earlier, people across the country were supporting protesting farmers. Now, people outside India are also showering their support to protesting farmers. The Government must introspect," he added.
Many celebrities including cricket icon Tendulkar and legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar rallied around the government on social media using hashtags #IndiaTogether and #IndiaAgainstPropaganda following tweets by Rihanna and climate activist Greta Thunberg backing farmers.
Farmers have been protesting on the different borders of the national capital since November 26 last year against the three new farm laws: Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.
(With inputs from Agencies)
