Team Clarion
NEW DELHI – Controversy surrounds an Instagram cartoon story allegedly posted by Yash Dayal, the left-arm Gujarat Titans’ pace bowler who got smashed for five sixes in an over by Rinku Singh of the Kolkata Knights Riders during the just-concluded Indian Premier League.
Dayal, who plays for Uttar Pradesh in domestic cricket, denies sharing the cartoon story that portrayed Muslims in bad light and revolved around the recent Shahbad Dairy murder case, in which a 16-year-old girl was stabbed to death by one Sahil Khan, media reports said.
It is claimed that Dayal deleted the story and offered a clarification calling the activity a ‘mistake’. Deleting his previous post, Dayal purportedly wrote, “Guys, apologies for the story. It was just posted by mistake, please don’t spread hate. Thank you. I have respect for each and every community and society.”
Through an official statement coming from the Gujarat franchise, Dayal said the objectionable cartoon and apology weren’t posted by him on his Instagram account. “Dear all, there were two stories posted on my Insta handle today — both of which weren’t done by me,” reports added.
“I have reported the matter to authorities as I believe my account is being accessed by someone else and used for posting. I am trying to regain full control of my Instagram account. I respect all communities and the picture shared today does not reveal my true beliefs.”
That, however, did not stop fans from lashing out at Dayal, accusing him of spreading hate.
These are some of the reactions from Twitter users:
Dayal has been affiliated with Uttar Pradesh in domestic cricket since 2018, before being bought by Gujarat ahead of IPL 2022. In that season, Dayal played nine games in the side’s run to the title in their debut season, taking 11 wickets at an economy rate of 9.25.
He also earned a call-up to India’s ODI squad for the series against Bangladesh last year but missed out due to a lower back injury.
