Politicians’ words affect people; they often create public awareness and controversy. Congress leader Shama Mohamed, however, brewed controversy because of an insensitive comment about Indian cricket captain Rohit Sharma. Her allegations, which are said to have fat-shamed and disrespected his leadership, created a firestorm on social media, attracting much condemnation. It even led the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to speak out against its silence.
Shama Mohamed’s controversial tweet on Rohit Sharma
Congress leader Shama Mohamed has quietly deleted both of her posts in which she called Rohit Sharma fat, a mediocre player and India’s most unimpressive captain.
But, our Rahul Gandhi is still a ‘youth icon’ — at 54 years old. pic.twitter.com/kOKcxmNqia
— Anshul Saxena (@AskAnshul) March 3, 2025
On Monday, Shama Mohamed made a post on X (the former twitter) with a now-deleted tweet that criticized Rohit Sharma’s physique while belittling his captaincy. The post read:
“@ImRo45 is fat for a sportsman! Needs to lose weight! And, of course, the most unimpressive captain India has ever had.”
She also dragged in illustrious names like Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Kapil Dev, and Ravi Shastri, mentioning that Rohit was “mediocre” players who was simply lucky to be captain of India.
BCCI Response to Controversy on Trolling of Shama Mohamed
“The team is in the middle of a crucial tournament. It may have demoralising effect on the team and players”: BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia to NDTV on Congress leader Shama Mohamed fat-shaming Rohit Sharma
— NDTV (@ndtv) March 3, 2025
Words from her, with regard to the demand she made, eventually resulted in dissent among fans and the cricketing community. Most of them thought her choice of words was unnecessary and disrespectful for the simple reason that Rohit Sharma has contributed to the cricket of India quite an amount.
#BREAKING | “Very unfortunate for a responsible person to pass such a trivial comment”: BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia to NDTV on Congress leader Shama Mohamed fat-shaming Rohit Sharma
— NDTV (@ndtv) March 3, 2025
While denying all her remarks, the BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia said that it was very unfortunate. Such remarks during such an ICC tournament would dampen the spirit of the Indian team.
“The team is at a stage where a very important tournament is ongoing. It may have a demoralizing effect on the team and players.”
BJP and Netizens Express Their Displeasure Towards Shama Mohamed
🚨 Fat-Shaming Under the Garb of ‘Freedom of Speech’? 🚨🔥
🔹 Congress’ Shama Mohammed defends her attack on Rohit Sharma!
🔹 “I just stated my opinion, it’s a democracy!”
🔹 Upset over Pakistan’s loss or something more to it? 🤔🔥 Selective outrage or pure hypocrisy?… pic.twitter.com/wcOpAqE6Aj
— Babu Bhaiya (@Baburao_aptay) March 3, 2025
Opposition parties, especially the Bharatiya Janata Party, quickly held Shama Mohamed under the fire for attacking Congress without any apparent justification. The case, according to BJP, was yet another in the party’s unfolding saga of controversies.
However, Rohit Sharma remains unfazed as he has led Team India to a clean group stage record in the champions trophy of ICC for the year. His captaincy skills and judgment are further reaffirmed as they march towards a semi-final clash with Australia.
Shama Mohamed deleted her tweet, but it was too late. In a recent interview, she defended her statements, insisting that speaking an opinion is her democratic right, which only spurred further backlash.
The incident also serves as a lesson about the power of words directed at national sports figures, and how they can affect public perception about public figures, and thus how public figures need to be particularly careful in their statements.
