Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi’s comments from Tuesday on the violence in Jammu and Kashmir has been severely criticised, especially by his Indian colleagues.

“Appalling and worrisome situation ongoing in India-occupied Kashmir,” Afridi had said on Twitter. “Innocents being shot down by an oppressive regime to clamp [down] the voice of self determination and independence.”

He also questioned the inaction of the United Nations and other international bodies on the matter and asked, “Why aren’t they making efforts to stop this bloodshed?”

Afridi’s tweets came after 19 people – 12 militants, three Army soldiers and four civilians – were killed in three separate gunfights in South Kashmir’s Shopian and Anantnag districts. A curfew-like situation prevails in these regions at the moment.

Indian cricketers Gautam Gambhir and Suresh Raina had much to say about Afridi’s comments on the violence in Kashmir.

In a jibe at the Pakistani cricketer’s tendency to retire and return to the game soon after, Gambhir said Afridi believes “UN” stands for “under nineteen”. “The media can relax. Afridi is celebrating a dismissal off a no- ball!” Gambhir said on Twitter.

In his critique of Afridi, Raina said he hoped the Pakistani sportsman would ask the “Pakistan Army to stop terrorism and the proxy war in our Kashmir”. “Kashmir is an integral part of India and will remain so always,” he said on Twitter. “Kashmir is the pious land where my forefathers were born...We want peace, not bloodshed and violence.”

Acclaimed lyricist Javed Akhtar, too, did not hold back his thoughts on Afridi. He said, “Dear Mr Afridi, since you want to see a peaceful JK sans any human rights violations, could you please see to it that Pak terrorists stop infiltrations, and Pak Army stops supporting the separatists by closing down the training camps? It will greatly help in solving the problem.”

After facing backlash on social media, Afridi shared an image of him holding the Indian flag with fans with the message: “We respect all. And this is an example as a sportsman. But when it comes to human rights, we expect the same for our innocent Kashmiris.”

Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli chose to be diplomatic on the controversy, saying it is a “very personal choice for someone to comment about certain issues”. “Unless I have total knowledge of the issues and the intricacies of it, I don’t engage in it, but definitely your priority stays with your nation,” he told ANI. “As an Indian, you want to express what is best for your nation, and my interests are always for the benefit of our nation. If anything opposes it, I would never support it for sure.”

Former India captain Kapil Dev, however, refused to comment on the matter, choosing instead to say that “we should not be giving importance to certain people”. “Who is he? Why are we giving importance to him?”