Published 13:32 IST, April 13th 2020
Geeta Basra staunchly defends Harbhajan Singh amid backlash for funding Afridi's charity
In a report, Basra is quoted to have said that he does not need to explain his actions and clarified that he lives and will die for India, amid criticism
Actor Geeta Basra has defended husband Harbhajan Singh after the former Indian cricketer came under fire on the Internet or supporting Pakistan counterpart Shahid Afridi’s call to help those affected by Coronavirus.
Basra backs Harbhajan
In a report by a leading English daily, Basra is quoted to have said that he does not need to explain his actions and clarified that he lives and will die for India. She added that religion should not be in this and that the same decision would have been made if a player from another country had made the proposal.
Earlier, Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh had pledged their support to the Shahid Afridi Foundation amid the COVID-19 crisis. Yuvraj Singh had tweeted that amid such testing times, people should be looking out for each other. Soon after his tweet, the all-rounder and Harbhajan Singh were severely criticised in some quarters as they questioned him for supporting a foundation in Pakistan while turning a blind eye to his own country until then. This comes after several athletes and cricketers stepped up to donate to the PM-CARES Fund to fight the Coronavirus crisis.
Yuvraj Singh has spoken out and defended his decision, whereas Harbhajan has not made any public comments regarding the backlash. Yuvraj stated that his intention was to help people in our respective countries by providing healthcare, adding that he did not mean to hurt anyone feeling. "I really don't understand how a message to help the most vulnerable gets blown out of proportion. All I tried to achieve via that message was to help people in our respective countries by providing healthcare, my intention was not to hurt anyone's feelings. I am an Indian and I will always bleed blue and will always stand for humanity," wrote Yuvraj.
Updated 13:32 IST, April 13th 2020