What if you were forced to relive one of the most painful moments of your life, all for a few clicks? Just days after former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi shared unseen footage from the infamous 2008 'Slapgate' incident between cricketers Harbhajan Singh and S. Sreesanth, the emotional fallout has been nothing short of explosive. Sreesanth’s wife, Bhuvneshwari, took to Instagram, condemning the resurfacing of this dark chapter as 'heartless and inhuman.'

Bhuvneshwari’s words echoed with raw emotion as she called out both Modi and Australian cricketer Michael Clarke for dragging up memories that both families had long since buried. “Shame on you @Lalitkmodi and @Michaelclarkeofficial,” she wrote, voicing the outrage many felt. “You people are not even human to drag up something from 2008 just for your own publicity and views.” With the passage of time, both Harbhajan and Sreesanth have matured into fathers. Yet, here they were, thrust back into a painful narrative for the sake of entertainment.

The original incident took place during the first season of the IPL, where a heated moment led to Harbhajan slapping Sreesanth after a match where Punjab triumphed over Mumbai. The public saw Sreesanth’s tears on the broadcast, but footage capturing the slap was notably absent—until now. Lalit Modi, perhaps seeking to revive interest in cricket's past, disclosed that he had held onto this footage for years. “I was there. It happened on the field… when it came to Sreesanth and Bhajji, Harbhajan just said to him, ‘Come here,’ and gave him a backhander,” Modi recounted during his appearance on Clarke’s podcast.

For the Sreesanth family, this resurfacing was more than just a controversial clip; it was a painful reminder of past trauma, one that Bhuvneshwari articulated poignantly. “As his wife and the mother of his children, it is deeply painful for our family to see this resurface after 18 long years,” she revealed. She emphasized that the emotional scars from that incident still haunt them, impacting their children who now face questions about an event they never lived through but are somehow tied to.

Harbhajan, reflecting on the aftermath of the incident, shared a heartbreaking moment he had with Sreesanth's daughter. “When I met his daughter and I was talking to her with a lot of love, she said, ‘I don’t want to talk to you. You hit my father.’ My heart was shattered,” he admitted, revealing how deeply the fallout of that event continues to affect relationships.

The resurfacing of footage that many thought was forgotten has ignited a firestorm of opinions and emotions in the cricketing community. The question on everyone’s mind is whether the pursuit of views and clicks is worth reopening old wounds that families have fought so hard to heal.