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Fact Check: Did MS Dhoni Really Disrespect the Indian National Anthem During IPL Game?

MENSXP May 09, 2025 09:39 PM

As the Indian armed forces continue to thwart the increasing hostilities by Pakistan as part of the ‘Operation Sindoor’, the patriotic fervour in the country has reached a whole new level, with the majority of the people standing firmly behind our heroes in their decisive action against Pakistan-sponsored terrorists.

Amidst all this, a small clip from a recent IPL match has gone viral on the internet, alleging that Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni disrespected the Indian national anthem played before the start of the match.

A fan recorded this clip from the live feed of the match played between Kolkata KJnight Riders (KKR) and CSK and claimed that Dhoni disrespected the national anthem by his constant movement during the national anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’ at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Absolutely shameless behavior by Ms Dhoni 💔💔 pic.twitter.com/gRPFdvgudy
— Vivek (@hailKohli18) May 8, 2025

While sharing the clip, the person wrote, “Absolutely shameless behaviour by Ms Dhoni.” The video garnered over 2.1 million views and around 6,4000 likes.

During the national anthem, all Indians stand still with their hands tucked straight to their sides. While this is not a rule, it’s a well-accepted ritual that every Indian follows to pay respect to the national anthem.

The person in the video said that while he understood foreigners not following this ritual and kept on moving their body parts, he expected a similar behaviour from Dhoni, who holds an honorary Lieutenant Colonel rank in the Indian Territorial Army.

Looking at the wide reach of this video, it seems many people believed Dhoni was guilty of this misdemeanour. However, if you looked closely, you would notice that Dhoni stood still as soon as he realised that the national anthem was on. In a desperate attempt to prove his malicious agenda, the person edited the very last frame in the video at the 0:29-second mark.

Dhoni was indeed a fraction of a second late in realising that the national anthem had started, but that might be because of the loud noise in the stadium.

Dhoni’s love for the nation and the Indian armed forces is no secret. There is no one who can point a finger at his patriotism. He had famously missed the birth of his only daughter Ziva furing the 2015 ODI World Cup, famously stating he was on a national duty and other things could wait.

“Not really. I have been blessed with a baby daughter. Mum and daughter both are good. But as of now I am on national duties so I think everything else can wait. The World Cup is a very important campaign,” Dhoni had said.

For a person, for whom the nation has been his top priority, would never disrespect the country and its sacred symbols, intentionally. Those who are accusing him of that should really be ashamed of themselves.