A file photo of former India cricketers Harbhajan Singh (left), Suresh Raina and with Yuvraj Singh during a match in Chennai.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

The National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) has lodged a police complaint against some former Team India cricketers for “insulting and mocking” the differently abled people in a video uploaded on social media platforms.

Also read: Stereotyping differently-abled persons in films, visual media perpetuate discrimination, says Supreme Court

The cricketers named in the complaint at Amar Colony police station in New Delhi. They are Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Suresh Raina, and Gurkeerat Mann.

The “celebrated cricketers” released a video on Instagram “where they can be seen intentionally insulting, mimicking and making fun of persons with disabilities”, the complaint by the NCPEDP’s executive director, Arman Ali said.

The video was uploaded from Harbhajan Singh’s Instagram handle (@harbhajan3) on July 14 showed the cricketers “walking and limping in a manner which is offensive to persons with disabilities”, it read.

“This entire act has been done in disguise of casual entertainment. We also want to register this complaint against Sandhya Devanathan, the Vice President and Managing Director of Meta India as the platform is also in violation of the Information Technology Act of 2000 by allowing such content to be posted on their platform Instagram which violating user guidelines,” the complaint read.

“The video is a violation of Article 21 of the Constitution of India which allows every person to have a right to life with dignity and also violates Section 92 of the Rights of Person with Disabilities Act, 2016,” Mr. Ali wrote, seeking necessary and appropriate action against “these anti-social elements”.