Afridi’s wrong ‘un: ‘Indians small-hearted, peace has no chance’

Shahid Afridi made a remarkable turnaround on cable TV last night, launching into a no-holds-barred attack on the Indian people, only days after he had passionately exhorted Pakistanis not to "hate India so much".

In extraordinary comments made to a cheering audience on Samaa, Afridi suggested that Indians have unclean and small hearts, and predicted that "nothing" would come out of the peace initiative of Prime Ministers Manmohan Singh and Yousuf Raza Gilani.

"In my opinion, if I have to tell the truth, they (Indians) will never have hearts like Muslims and Pakistanis. I don't think they have the large and clean hearts that Allah has given us," Afridi said when asked about relations between the two countries.

"It is a very difficult thing for us to live with them (Indians) or to have long-term relationship with them. Nothing will come out of talks. See how many times in the past 60 years we have had friendship and then how many times things have gone bad," Afridi said.

The comments contrasted sharply with what Afridi had told reporters after arriving in Pakistan after his team's World Cup semi-final loss to India.

"Why are we so against India... why do we hate India so much?" Afridi had said to a noisy gathering. "If this is the case, then why are Indian serials being watched in every (Pakistani) home, and why do all our weddings follow the Indian style? We watch so many Indian movies... So why this hatred for India?"

On TV on Sunday evening, however, Afridi turned sharply on the Indian media and "a third country", presumably the United States, accusing them of not allowing India and Pakistan to be friends.

"We don't want to fight with each other but a third country —everyone knows which one it is — is trying to spoil our relations. (This country) is taking advantage of Pakistan and wants to take advantage of India. I don't want to go into details but these people will not let us come together," he said.

... contd.

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