Former Indian cricket captain and legend Anil Kumble faced backlash for supporting the union government regarding the ongoing farmers' protests. Kumble like many other of his former teammates like Sachin Tendulkar with #IndiaTogether hashtags to counter international voices speaking in support of the farmers' protest.
Samyukta Karnataka Horata, an umbrella forum of farmers, workers and Dalit organisations in Karnataka, said in its tweet, "More than 100 farmers have died ever since farmer organisations launched protests in Delhi. Even farmers in Karnataka had been protesting against the state and central government amendments to the farm laws, since September. Dear Kumble, did you ever ask these farmers as to why were they protesting? Why are you tweeting now? Your stand in the matter is very painful."
Three days ago, condemning famed singer Rihanna and activists like Greta Thunberg who had tweeted in support of the protesting farmers, Kumble took to Twitter using the Union government's hashtag campaign #IndiaTogether and #IndiaAgainstPropaganda over the ongoing farmers' protests.
Since then, there has been increasing international support for India's farmers' movement, with many international celebrities, politicians and social workers openly coming out in support of the Indian farmers.
Renowned Kannada writer Srinivasa Karkala said, "Human rights violations are not the internal affairs of any country."
Chetan Krishna asked, "Being a Kannadiga, how could you be a mouthpiece of this vicious government?"
Rekha Srinivas, a social activist wrote, "No one said a word when Trump called India dirty. It is amusing to hear all the noise against the international celebrities who are empathetic with the farmers' cause. May there be some loyalty towards farmers who toil hard to feed you."
Kannada activist Dinesh Kumar said, "Didn't you think of the prestige and reputation of the country when you read about hundreds of farmers who died because of the cold at the protest sites? Where was your 'self respect' when farmers were attacked and fake cases being filed against them? You should be ashamed of yourself for selling yourself to the ruling party."