ICC World Cup: Pakistani cricket fan asked not to cheer for his country at Bengaluru stadium

A Pakistani man was asked not to chant “Pakistan Zindabad” during Friday's Australia vs Pakistan World Cup match in Bengaluru. Footage that has been widely circulated online shows a policeman asking the Pakistani man not to cheer for his team during the international cricket tournament, which has seen cricket fans from across the world descend upon India to cheer for their countries.

The Pakistani man tried to reason with the cop, but to no avail. The video shows him asking why, if Indian fans can chant “Bharat Mata ki jai”, he can’t cheer for his team by saying “Pakistan Zindabad.”

“Bharat Mata ki jai good, but no Pakistan Zindabad,” the cop replied.

“Fans who have come from Pakistan will obviously say Pakistan Zindabad. What else will they say?” the fan tells the policeman, who refuses to budge from his stance. He also refuses to repeat his instructions for the camera, probably unaware that he was already being filmed.
Footage of the interaction has gone viral on social media, where it has divided opinion. The video has racked up more than half a million views on the microblogging platform X.

In the comments section, several X users asked ICC to investigate the incident, which took place on October 20 at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium.