Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Friday lambasted tennis star Sania Mirza for deciding to marry Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik and said she is no longer an Indian.
The 84-year-old Sena supremo also said that had Sania been truly Indian at heart she would not have chosen a Pakistani.
"Henceforth, Sania will not remain an Indian. Had her heart been Indian, it wouldn't have beaten for a Pakistani," Thackeray said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamna'.
Thackeray further went ahead and asked Sania to marry an Indian if she wishes to play for India.
"If she wished to play for India, she should have chosen an Indian life partner," he added.
Thackeray's comments came days after the Sena attacked Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan for his comments on the omission of Pakistani players from the third edition of Indian Premier League(IPL) cricket tournament now underway.
23-year-old Sania, who is the most successful woman tennis player from the sub-continent, has announced her marriage to the 28-year-old former Pakistan skipper on April 15 in Hyderabad..
"More than victories on tennis court, Sania became famous for her tight clothes, fashion and love affairs," Thackeray alleged.
"More than her play, people's attention was on her mannerisms," he claimed.
The Sena supremo alleged that "for Shoaib, India is an enemy, not only in sports arena but also in the battlefield.
"We have heard that Shoaib has many affairs in India and has promised many girls he will marry them," he said.
Thackeray also expressed surprise over the alacrity with which Sania's family members were granted Pakistani visas.
"Getting a Pakistani visa is tough even for a singer like Lata Mangeshkar," he said. PTI
