'Dalit' Vinod Kambli rejects BJP MP's claims of discrimination in cricket

New Delhi: Former India batsman Vinod Kambli has rejected controversial remarks made by Delhi BJP MP Udit Raj on his Dalit background.

Raj, who is also the chairman of All India Confederation of SC/ST Organizations, had earlier tweeted that "Vinod Kambli you should not be shy of accepting that you are a Dalit and that was the reason of your exclusion from cricket”.

@vinodkambli349 you should not be shy of accepting that u r a Dalit and that was the reason of ur exclusion from cricket @BCCI @AIParisangh — Dr. Udit Raj, MP (@Dr_Uditraj) December 27, 2016

Kambli, 44, responded to the claim saying "Mr Raj, I don't support any of your statements. Hence, i request you to refrain from using my name!!!"

"Mr Raj, I don't support any of your statements. Hence, i request you to refrain from using my name!!!" https://t.co/diQRrR0bFU

— VINOD KAMBLI (@vinodkambli349) December 27, 2016

Earlier, Raj had sought reservation in cricket for Dalits.

Kambli played 17 Tests and 104 ODIs for India, scoring 1084 and 2477 runs respectively.

He retired from international cricket in 2009, and from first-class cricket in 2011.