Kirti Azad, Twitterati Slam Sports Minister Vijay Goel For Rio Controversy

World-Cup winning cricketer and BJP MP Kirti Azad said on Friday that sports minister Vijay Goel should have "exercised restraint" in meeting Indian sportspersons competing in Rio Olympics 2016.

The minister and his aides have irked Summer Games organisers for breaking stiff protocols that allow complete safety and privacy to athletes.

Speaking to NDTV, Azad, the 1983 World Cup-winning spinning all-rounder, said: "(You cannot) for your protocol breach someone else's protocol. These are not political functions. Everyone knows their limitations till where you can go."

Azad added: "At no point in time, no matter how big a sportsman or politician you are, you are not allowed to playing arena, dressing room or pavilion."

Organisers at the Rio Olympics have threatened to cancel the accreditation of Goel and withdraw privileges offered to him if he does not effect an urgent correction in the behaviour of aides who have accompanied him.

"We have had multiple reports of your Minister for Sports trying to enter accredited areas at venues with unaccredited individuals.

"When the staff try to explain that this is not allowed, they report that the people with the Minister have become aggressive and rude and sometimes push past our staff," an official Sarah Patterson said in a letter to India's Chef de Mission Rakesh Gupta.

Sports minister slammed on social media

Meanwhile, Goel has been slammed on social media. Soon after news emerged that Goel could lose his accreditation, Twitter went abuzz about the incident with Twitterati slamming the Minister for being "aggressive and rude" and pushing in non-accredited persons into restricted venues.

Twitterati did not take kindly to the incident and criticism poured in from all over the country.

"#VijayGoel has damaged image of India at international level by his rude and aggressive behaviour," said a Twitter user on Friday.

"Today #VijayGoel, previously some othr minister/Bureaucrat such stupid, idiocy must b stopped, India doesn't need these kind of embarrassment."

"Lol! and if he does it again they'll take away his accreditation so no more selfies for him #VijayGoel," another unimpressed Twitter user said.

"Normally our politicians behave nicely as soon as they board on international flight. This #VijayGoel must be drunk??" pondered another user.

Vijay Goel denies involvement

Goel, however, has denied his involvement in any such improper behaviour and told NDTV on Thursday that there seems to be some misunderstanding.

"To my knowledge, we have been following all rules & regulations. We are committed to the spirit of Olympics & back our Indian players," Goel wrote.

"There seems to be some misunderstanding as we have followed all protocols as advised by the organisers."

Gupta also said that "unfortunately, a non-issue is being made an issue without reason".

(With inputs from IANS)