Page 17 - The Indian EYE 110521

Op-Ed NOVEMBER 05, 2021 | The Indian Eye 17

India-pak rivalry, spyware and hate mongering

Views and opinions from the top commentators in Indian media

he rivalry between Pa- the government.
kistan and India on the Reading the judgement
Tcricket pitch is legend- from the start might give one
ary. A match between the two the impression that the court
neighbours gets the most eye- genuinely cares about such
balls and generates an adren- things as the freedom of press,
aline rush. Pakistan and India privacy, et al. However, this is
don’t get to play against each the incorrect way to read the
other except in ICC tourna- order.
ments. Much of the judgement is
The absence of Pakistani fluff designed to elicit plaudits
players from the Indian Premier on social media and gushing
League as well as the discontin- headlines. The operative part
uation of bilateral series with of the Supreme Court’s order
India is unfortunate. We saw Vi- actually starts on paragraph 54
rat Kohli’s graceful gesture after and this tells us why everything
India’s defeat against Pakistan said before this was hokum.
and everyone appreciated the
camaraderie between him and FaCebOOK anD hate
Pakistan’s opening duo at the
end of the match. This is what his week a trove of more
than 10,000 pages of in-
sportsmanship and the spirit of Tternal Facebook docu-
cricket are all about. ments, studies and correspon-
Mohammad Rizwan tweet- dence capturing headlines
ed his support for Mohammad across the world were released.
Shami because he understands
the “pressure, struggles & sacri- They have posed questions in
fices a player has to go through People hold placards during a protest against the online abuse of Indian the public mind, beyond pol-
for his country”. Rizwan said cricketer Mohammed Shami near Eden Garden, in Kolkata on Thursday (ANI) icy wonks and experts, about
the impact on India and more
that Shami is one of the best importantly on them as us-
bowlers in the world and should to Virat Kohli, can send out ing openers. It was not difficult ers of Facebook services.
be respected: “This game the much-needed message of to see why the digital mob had In September 2021, Frances
should bring people together & inclusion to the young. The targeted Shami.
not divide ‘em.” And this is why cricketers’ silence stood out, -- Editorial, Haugen, a former Facebook
when New Zealand abandoned especially when the team col- The Indian Express employee had submitted eight
complaints to the US Securi-
their tour of Pakistan last month, lectively supported the ICC’s the PeGasus OrDer ties and Exchange Commission.
their captain, Kane Williamson, anti-racism stand by taking the This is the regulatory body that
had called it a “real shame”. As knee, the protest posture made eading the order in the exercises oversight over the
a player, he understood what famous by the Black Lives Mat- Pegasus matter, it is ev- capital markets and companies
Pakistan’s players must have ter movement. A long list of for-Rident that the court has
gone through. mer players did react but many answered this question—but like Facebook Inc which are list-
-- Mehmal Sarfraz, missed the point. Calling Shami it is unwilling to act on the an- ed there. Her complaint alleges
material misrepresentations by
The Telegraph a committed, world-class bowl- swer. The order, authored by Facebook and that its manage-
er, Sachin Tendulkar tweeted: CJI NV Ramana, has no choice
shami On tarGet “He had an off day like any oth- but to come to the conclusion ment has misled shareholders.
er sportsperson can have.” But that the petitioners’ allegations These eight complaints are on a
n the polarized world of so- a player doesn’t deserve civility are indeed true but hesitates to broad range of issues including
cial media, debate usually based on the runs he concedes take the next logical step and promotion of extremist content
Imeans extremists on either in the game. And this was a day hold the government account- and hate speech.
side hijacking the discourse. -- Apar Gupta and Anushka
Add to this the potent mix of when India was thrashed by 10 able. Instead, what the court Jain, The Times of India
cricket, India, Pakistan and wickets, openers Rohit Sharma has done is set up a committee
majority vs minority, and it’s and K L Rahul went for single which will more or less cover Every week, we look at what
digits, finishers Ravinder Jade- the same ground as the court
not difficult to see why many ja and Hardik Pandya failed to already did during the hearings the top commentators in the
may see silence as a preferred fire at the end and the world’s and submit recommendations Indian media are talking about
option. But India’s sporting top bowler Jasprit Bumrah was of a general nature which, in all and bring to you a slice
icons, from Neeraj Chopra of their opinions and comments
blunted by Pakistan’s saunter- likelihood, will be ignored by

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