Pakistan media mocks India showing Abhinandan Vartaman’s photoshop image during a Pakistan Super League game

Abhinandan Varthaman, a pilot for the Indian Air Force, was utilized once more on February 27 to mock India. This time, the picture was displayed as Lahore Qalandars and Islamabad United were playing in the Pakistan Super League. During the game, the large screen showed a picture of the Indian Air Force hero holding a cup of tea at the mid-game break.

Interestingly, the photo was shot in 2019, after Abhinandan’s jet had fallen in Pakistan and he had been captured by the Pakistani Army. A video of him drinking tea provided by the Pakistani Army went viral. Later, Pakistan released Abhinandan under strong Indian pressure. The leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (N), Ayaz Sadiq, claimed in a statement that Pakistan released Abhinandan out of concern that India might attack if he was not given back.

A similar episode has already been used to make fun of India. Even PSL has already made fun of India by saying “tea is amazing,” which provoked outrage on social media. At that time, Mohammad Hussai was pictured drinking tea, and the hashtag “Tea is Fantastic” was used to tweet about it by Lahore Qalandars.

Tea was excellent: Abhinandan Vartaman

In a gesture to humiliate and mock the Indian military, a Pakistani journalist asked Ben Stokes, “How was the tea?” in December 2022, mimicking the question they had asked Wing Commander Abhinandan while he was in Pakistani detention.

Pakistani authorities released a video of Abhinandan thanking the officers and being asked if he enjoyed the tea while he was in their custody. Tea was excellent, Abhinandan said. Since then, for reasons best known to them, Pakistanis have exploited the statement to inspire memes.

They appear to believe that the incident—in which a lone IAF pilot touched down in Pakistan, drank tea, spent more than 24 hours there, and was then gently escorted back to India because Pakistan was afraid of Indian action—glorifies Pakistan and mocks India in some way. But Pakistan isn’t exactly known for its intelligence.