BENGALURU: Sri Lankan cricket legend Muttiah Muralitharan has hit the headlines once again and for the wrong reasons. The "Doosra" master is facing flak after Sri Lankan media reports suggested that he may be the next Governor of the Tamil-dominated Northern Province.
During the election campaign, the 47-year-old had backed Gotabaya Rajapaksa who was on Monday sworn in as the Sri Lankan president.
Gotabaya was the defence secretary of the island nation when the LTTE was wiped out.
Tamils from the Northern Province are seeing red ever since they heard of his possible nomination.
The mystery spinner who has taken 800 Test wickets is an Indian Tamil from Kandy. Indian Tamils are those from Tamil Nadu who migrated during the British rule in search of work.
A Sri Lankan Tamil journalist was quoted as saying that it was disappointing to see Murali supporting the Rajapaksas, adding that covering up the truth was like adding fuel to the fire.
"There were no war crimes and no genocide is his public stand. How can he say this? Is he not himself a Tamilian? He is doing it to be in the good books of the Rajapaksas. It is terrible," said another Tamil journalist from Kandy.