Former Yorkshire player and anti-racism whistleblower Azeem Rafiq has landed himself in a recent controversy. Rafiq, 30, has been accused of send ‘creepy’ messages to after-teenager Gayathri Ajith 6 years ago.
As pe to the a report released in the Yorkshire Post, Ajith, who was Sixteen at the time, has charged Rafiq of sending ‘vulgar’ messages on Social media (Whatsapp), 3 months after they met on a flight from Manchester to Dubai in Sept 2015.
Ms. Ajith said she accepted the request to have a vodka cake with Rafiq on the flight but denied to go out for dinner with him in Dubai.
Here is the Screenshots of messages sent in December 2015 from a number belonging to Rafiq, see:
“u know what I wanted to do on the plane?” and “I want to grab you push u up against wall and kiss you.”
When Ms. Ajith said, “do you realise that I’m only 17?” Rafiq asked, “Does tht mean it not allowed to want to kiss me,” and “,Wud u have let me kiss u?”
https://twitter.com/PoliticsForAlI/status/1462026431492468743
Ajith, who is now 22, explained Rafiq’s messages as ‘vulgar’ and ‘creepy’ as she told the ordeal to the Yorkshire Post. She answered:
“I was just kind of shocked by the crudity of those messages. They were just so vulgar.”
Such was her trouble that she even asked Rafiq:
“How do I know that you’re no some absolute pervert?”
This is not the initial time Rafiq has been caught up in controversy. Previously this week, he excused publicly after some anti-Semitic conversation from 2011 came to light.
“He’s calling for equality and respect, but why is he not contain that in all views?” Gayathri Ajith
Previously his anti-Semitic massage came to lamp, Azeem had almost accomplished cult status in the world of cricket for bringing to light the rampant ‘institutionalised racism’ in Yorkshire cricket.
She said:
“I’m not disputing any of his racism claims because I’m sure they’re very true experiences. But certain aspects of what he said just don’t really sit right with me. If he was being forced to drink by his teammates, then surely that wouldn’t then mean he would be drinking alone on a flight and encouraging a 17-year-old girl to be drinking with him.”
NEW: Cricketer Azeem Rafiq told 16-year-old: "I wanted to grab you, pin you against the wall and kiss you."
Gayathri Ajith found the courage to tell her story to The Yorkshire Post…
👇🏻https://t.co/ePhDdaoK8d— James Mitchinson (@JayMitchinson) November 20, 2021
She added:
“His behaviour towards me was a direct contradiction really of what he said in his testimony. He’s calling for equality and respect, but why is he not embodying that in all aspects? Especially in his tone towards women. It’s hypocrisy. He is being put on this pedestal for inciting systemic change, but he’s really contributing to the problem of the vulgar attitudes towards women.”
A spokesperson to Rafiq told the Yorkshire Post:
“This was put to us late on a Friday evening. We need to look into this so cannot comment further for now.”
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