Congress leader Udit Raj on Monday, 14 September 2026, publicly criticised the Indian women's cricket team for declining to accept the Women's Asia Cup trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi, dismissing the gesture as little more than political drama.

What Udit Raj Said

'Again, theatrics, terrible theatrics, and event theatrics,' Udit Raj said. 'When the Pakistan team has already come, the Pakistani players have come here, are staying here and are playing, then this theatrics of not taking the trophy from his hands is only drama.'

The Congress leader's remarks set him apart from the broader wave of nationalist sentiment that had largely applauded the squad's decision, reflecting an internal tension within India's opposition over how to respond to cricket diplomacy controversies.

What Happened on the Field and at the Podium

The controversy stems from the post-match presentation ceremony on Sunday, held after India secured a dominant 72-run victory over Sri Lanka in the Women's Asia Cup final. The win handed India a record-extending eighth Women's Asia Cup title — the most by any nation in the tournament's history.

Despite the historic win, captain Harmanpreet Kaur and her teammates declined to receive the trophy from Naqvi, who also serves as Pakistan's Interior Minister. The gesture was widely seen as a continuation of a pattern set by the Indian men's team, which had similarly refused to accept the Asia Cup trophy from Naqvi in Dubai less than a year earlier.

A Pattern Beyond One Tournament

Notably, this is now the second successive Asia Cup cycle — across both the men's and women's competitions — in which an Indian team has declined to accept the trophy from the ACC chief. Critics of Udit Raj's position argue that the refusal is a principled stance rooted in India-Pakistan diplomatic tensions; supporters of his view contend that the optics are inconsistent given Pakistan's active participation in the tournament on Indian soil.

The incident feeds into a broader, recurring debate over how Indian sport navigates its political relationship with Pakistan, particularly at bilateral or pan-Asian competitions.

Udit Raj on 'Vande Mataram' Row and UCC

Separately, Udit Raj also weighed in on the controversy surrounding the singing of 'Vande Mataram' before the National Anthem during the India vs Afghanistan T20I match. He urged against amplifying what he called an unnecessary narrative. 'What is the big deal in this? The only thing that truly matters is that they played properly. They won, and we congratulate them on their victory,' he said.

The Congress leader further took aim at Union Home Minister Amit Shah's announcement that the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) would be implemented across all 21 states governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) before 2029. Shah had made the statement at a press conference in Mumbai on Sunday.

'What purpose will implementing the UCC serve? Instead, the focus should be on eradicating caste. Without the annihilation of caste, genuine national progress cannot be achieved,' Udit Raj said. He added that caste structures had 'done a lot of harm to talent and education,' arguing that development targets were unachievable without addressing those systemic inequalities.

Shah, meanwhile, had said: 'We introduced the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in several states. I am confident that we will implement the UCC in all 21 states governed by the BJP-led NDA before 2029.' The UCC seeks to establish a common set of personal laws — covering marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption — applicable across religious communities.

What to Watch

With the UCC rollout timeline now firmed up by Shah, the political debate over its scope and social consequences is set to intensify ahead of state elections in the NDA's target states. On the cricket front, the BCCI's tacit approval — or at least non-intervention — in the trophy-refusal tradition raises questions about whether this will become formalised policy at future ICC and ACC events.