NEW DELHI: Political tensions between India and Bangladesh spilled over to the cricket field after Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan recently inducted Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman into his Indian Premier League (IPL) team Kolkata Knight Riders and a Hindutva politician called him a traitor, according to reports on Friday.
According to the Hindustan Timesopposition Congress party on Thursday condemned Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sangeet Som’s criticism of Shahrukh for inducting Mustafizur into its electorate.
A former MP from Uttar Pradesh, Som targeted Shahrukh and called him a ‘gaddar’ (traitor) for supporting the decision.
This is not unusual for the popular actor, who happens to be Muslim. In fact, the triumvirate of Muslim film stars of Sharukh, Salman Khan and Amir Khan have all faced allegations of being anti-Hindu, pro-Pakistan or whatever name the BJP supporters choose.
Even cinema legend Dilip Kumar was not spared either.
The Mustafizur controversy erupted after the IPL 2026 auction, where KKR got ‘The Fizz’ for a staggering Rs92 million.
While the move was seen as a tactical masterstroke by cricket analysts, it has also turned into an ongoing nationalist backlash amid diplomatic tensions between India and Bangladesh.
The controversy over Mustafizur’s membership in Shahrukh’s team coincides well with the national election season in West Bengal, where the BJP is threatening to unseat secular chief minister Mamata Banerjee in elections due by the middle of the year.
Mustafizur’s selection to play for KKR comes amid allegations mainly from the Indian right regarding attacks on Hindus.
While calling Shahrukh a traitor, Som questioned him for investing money in a player “from a country working against India”.
THE Hindustan Times quoted in a video clip of him saying: “In the same way Hindus are persecuted in Bangladesh, women and girls are raped, their houses are burnt and anti-Indian slogans are chanted there.
“Despite all this, traitors like Shahrukh Khan, I call him a traitor because everything he has is given by India, given by the people of India, but where are they investing this money? They are investing it in players from a country that is working against India. I want to tell people like Shahrukh that they will not succeed.”
Congress MP Manickam Tagore, strongly condemning the remarks as “traitorous”, called the comments an “attack on Indian pluralism” while asserting that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) should stop “poisoning society”.
But Som was adamant. “Rahman will not be able to leave the airport,” he said.
Published in Dawn, January 3, 2026
