Virat Kohli can't be a patriot as he married abroad: BJP leader

Guna (MP): A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator from Guna in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday voiced his reservations over cricketer Virat Kohli and Bollywood actress opting for a foreign land as the venue of their marriage.

"A big cricketer got married recently. But in such a large country, he could find a place to marry. A player, for whom the land of India doesn't hold any importance, can't be a patriot," said MLA Pannalal Shakya, without naming Kohli, while inaugurating a skill development centre here.

The BJP has, however, distanced itself from the remarks of Shakya.

Party's state spokesperson Rajneesh Agrawal told reporters that the remarks were personal views of the MLA and that the BJP had nothing to do with it.

Reacting to Shakya's remarks, Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Arun Yadav said: "When the BJP leaders want to hide their failures, they start giving such statements to divert people's attention. That's what is happening currently in state."