Dawn Images

Thursday was a day of celebration after weightlifter Nooh Dastagir bagged a gold medal and smashed the Commonwealth Games’ record in England. The sentiment quickly morphed into anger when news of the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) suspending the Pakistani Weightlifting Federation (PWF) surfaced. Celebs such as Aijaz Aslam, Ahsan Khan and Ushna Shah raised their voices and spoke against the disappointing turn of events.

The celebs shared a news piece that made the claim of suspension on accounts of charges of corruption and mismanagement over anti-doping rules. Images confirmed that this was only a reiteration of the PSB’s suspension of the PWF affiliation in July for being involved in a number of malpractices and a doping controversy featuring the country’s weightlifters.

Aslam took to his Instagram to express his horror. “This nation never ceases to surprise me. Should we not be [welcoming] our champions home rather than suspending the Weightlifting Federation of Pakistan? Should we not be proud [of] what are [they] trying to do? What is the purpose of this action now??? This is atrocious,” he wrote.

Khan shared the same news and added “WTH (What the hell)….!!!?” under it along with the weightlifter’s name in a hashtag.

Shah simply had a question for her followers, “Is this how we thank our heroes?”

Pakistan is full of talented individuals who should be supported by the government so they get a chance to exercise their potential and make a name for themselves and the country.