'Hats off to Captain Rohit Sharma': Cong's Shama Mohamed hails Champions Trophy win
New Delhi, Mar 9 (PTI): Congress leader Shama Mohamed, whose online posts fat-shaming Indian captain Rohit Sharma sparked a major row last week, hailed Sharma on Sunday for leading from the front in the Champions Trophy final and congratulated the team on their triumph in the tournament.
Sharma made an excellent half-century as a resolute India held their nerve to win an unprecedented third Champions Trophy title with a four-wicket victory over New Zealand in the final in Dubai.
In a post on X, Mohamed said, "Congratulations to Team India for their stupendous performance in winning the Champions Trophy 2025!"
"Hats off to Captain @ImRo45 who led from the front with a brilliant 76, setting the tone for victory. Shreyas Iyer and K L Rahul played crucial knocks, steering India to glory! A triumph to remember!" she said.
Bowling first after Rohit lost his 12th straight toss, India's spinners restricted New Zealand to 251 for seven in the allotted 50 overs, with Kuldeep Yadav (2/40) and Varun Chakaravarthy (2/45) making significant contributions with the ball.
India completed the chase of 252 with six balls to spare after Rohit (76 off 83 balls) and Shreyas Iyer (48 off 62 balls) shone with the bat.
Congress spokesperson Mohamed's posts fat-shaming Sharma had sparked a major row last Monday, riling millions of cricket fans and drawing flak from various quarters including her own party and Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya who slammed them as "deeply shameful".
BJP leaders attacked Mohamed and the Congress after she targeted the Indian cricket captain, with the ruling party's social media head Amit Malviya alleging that it was a "premeditated put down to undermine the team's morale at a crucial time".
Distancing itself from Mohamed's remarks on Sharma, the Congress had asserted that Mohamed's remarks about the cricketing legend do not reflect the party's position and asked her to exercise greater caution in future.
"The Indian National Congress holds the contributions of sporting icons in the highest regard and does not endorse any statements that undermine their legacy," Congress' media and publicity department head Pawan Khera had said.
She has been asked to delete the social media posts from X, he had said.
Mohamed had said these were her personal remarks and that an issue had been made out unnecessarily. She also said that she is proud of Sharma but was only talking about his fitness.
Congratulations to #TeamIndia for their stupendous performance in winning the #ChampionsTrophy2025! 🇮🇳🏆
— Dr. Shama Mohamed (@drshamamohd) March 9, 2025
Hats off to Captain @ImRo45 who led from the front with a brilliant 76, setting the tone for victory. @ShreyasIyer15 and @klrahul played crucial knocks, steering India to…
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
