Pakistan Foreign Office slammed Indian authorities on Thursday over the “baseless” case against renowned presenter Zainab Abbas.
Abbas was forced to leave India on Monday during the ICC World Cup 2023 after an Indian lawyer accused her of making “Anti-Hindu” comments on her social media accounts in the past.
As the news of her leaving India emerged it was being claimed that she was deported by India.
However, a spokesperson for the International Cricket Council (ICC) confirmed to Geo News that the presenter had left the country due to "personal reasons" and dismissed deportation reports.
The Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in a statement that “Zainab is being dragged into a baseless case. Making a case against her on tweets is not the right thing to do”.
An Indian lawyer had reportedly approached the police for the registration of a complaint against Abbas for allegedly issuing statements against India and Hinduism.
Abbas was announced as one of the presenters for this year’s World Cup earlier this month. The presenter was really excited about the opportunity to travel to India when the announcement was made.
Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, the presenter had said that she was "humbled" by the idea of joining the star-studded line-up of commentators and presenters for the mega event.
MoFA was also hopeful that Indian visas will also be issued to Pakistani journalists and fans soon.
“We are in contact with Indian authorities over issuance of visas. We have also told them to expedite the process,” the spokesperson said.
On Tuesday, the embassy started contacting the journalists willing to cover the mega event underway in India, and directed them to submit their passports at the earliest.
The much-awaited development came a day after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) once again expressed dismay over the delay in the issuance of Indian visas for Pakistani fans and journalists despite nearly a week into the World Cup 2023.
The mega cricket event began on October 5, but the Indian authorities have not yet issued visas to Pakistanis for attending the World Cup, leaving them in uncertainty.
