Dhoni a patriot, Pak need not advise us on gloves row: Giriraj

Union minister Giriraj Singh slammed Pakistan's Minister for criticising Dhoni for wearing sporting gloves embossed with the Indian Army's insignia. He appreciated Indian wicketkeeper calling him a patriot.

Begusarai: Lashing out at a Pakistan minister over his snide remarks on Mahendra Singh Dhoni's gloves with 'Balidan' insignia, Union minister Giriraj Singh on Sunday said that the Indian wicketkeeper is a "patriot" and the country does not need any advice from its neighbour.

Dhoni, an honorary Lieutenant Colonel of the Territorial Army, landed in a controversy after sporting gloves embossed with a design of a dagger - which looked more like the Indian Army's insignia. He wore the gloves during India's World Cup game against South Africa in Southampton last Wednesday.

"Dhoni is a renowned cricketer and the pride of Jharkhand, which was carved out of Bihar. He is a patriot and he displayed his patriotism. We do not need any advice from Pakistan on the matter," Singh said.

Fawad Chaudhary, Pakistan's Minister for Science and Technology, on June 6 said that Dhoni was in England to play cricket, not for "Mahabharta". He also said that a section of Indian media was obsessed with war.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) had recently requested the Board Of Control For Cricket In India (BCCI) to advise the Indian cricketer to remove the insignia from his gloves.

The BCCI, while stating that it did not wish to get into a spat with the ICC on the issue, maintained that the embossed the design was not exactly the insignia of the Army, and hence, wearing gloves with the badge should not be seen as a violation of norms.