Pakistan's 'Hindu' cricketer Danish Kaneria accuses his govt of ‘sheltering, nurturing terrorists’

Former Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria has put his country's government on a spot by holding it accountable for the Pahalgam terrorist attack in India's Jammu & Kashmir that claimed 26 lives.

Kaneria, who now lives in the UK, put out a social media post on Wednesday in which he urged Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to shed his silence on the terrorist attack launched by The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow group of the banned Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

"If Pakistan truly has no role in the Pahalgam terror attack, why hasn’t Prime Minister Shehbaz condemned it yet? Why are your forces suddenly on high alert? Because deep down, you know the truth — you’re sheltering and nurturing terrorists. Shame on you," Kaneria posted.

Kaneria had been banned for life by the England and Wales Cricket Boards in connection with a spot-fixing case. The 44-year-old has been at loggerheads with his home country, and famously said the Pakistan Cricket Board was unwilling to back him because he was "a proud Hindu".

Kaneria is only the second Hindu to represent Pakistan after his cousin, Anil Dalpat. He was a successful bowler with 261 wickets from 61 Test matches.

A few years ago former pacer Shoaib Akhtar had alleged that many in Pakistan cricket did not want Kaneria in their national team because of his religious beliefs. Earlier on the day, former Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Hafeez said he was "sad and heartbroken" by the terrorist attack in Pahalgam.