Outrage as Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni skip Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha ceremony: Social media users express anger

Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma received a special invitation to the Ram Mandir ceremony earlier in the month. The world celebrated the consecration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi completing the Pran Pratishtha ceremony of the new Ram Lalla. The event was attended by industrialists, celebrities, and sportspersons. Fans were elated to see the photos of legends like Sachin Tendulkar and Anil Kumble attending the grand event, but were disappointed to not see MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli in the ceremony despite receiving invitations. The gesture of India’s star players was not liked by netizens, leading to further infuriation on social media.

Meanwhile, a major setback for Team India as Virat Kohli withdrew from the first two Tests of the upcoming five-match series against England, citing personal reasons. The 35-year-old was also spotted in the airport on Sunday even as India began their training camp in Hyderabad where they will also play the series opening match on January 25.

Fans are speculating if Anushka Sharma’s health is the reason why Virat Kohli has backed out of the Test series and couldn’t attend the Ram Mandir’s Pran Pratishtha ceremony. Speculations of Anushka Sharma’s pregnancy have been circulating on the internet for a while now.

Other sports legends including Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar, Venkatesh Prasad, Virendra Sehwag, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Rahul Dravid were also invited to attend the historic event. Whereas Ravindra Jadeja from the Indian Cricket Team was present at the event with his wife. The Pran Pratishtha ceremony led by PM Modi symbolizes the return of Ram Lalla after 500 years, in the newly built Ram Temple.