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Uzbekistan's Grandmaster Nodirbek Yakubboev triggered a huge controversy after deciding to snub a handshake offer by Indian chess star Vaishali, who is also the sister of R Praggnanandhaa. As soon as the video of the handshake snub surfaced on social media, the Uzbek GM's act saw him court plenty of criticism. Some even reminded him of his match against another Indian chess star Divya Deshmukh in 2023, where Yakubboev had shaken hands with his opponent. As the controversy spiralled on, Yakubboev decided to issue an apology and also a clarification.
A video circulating on social media showed Vaishali extending her hand before the start of a fourth-round match against Yakubboev. However, Yakubboev sits down after turning down her gesture, leaving the Indian player visibly uncomfortable.
Once the video went viral, Yakubboev posted a response on 'X' saying, "I want to explain the situation that happened in the game with Vaishali. With all due respect to women and Indian chess players, I want to inform everyone that I do not touch other women for religious reasons."
"I respect Vaishali and her brother as the strongest chess players in India. If I have offended her with my behaviour, I apologise.
"I have some additional explanations: 1) Chess is not haram. 2) What I did before (referring to the game with Divya in 2023 and cases like that) I consider it wrong for me. 3) I do what I need to do. I do not insist others not to shake hands with the opposite gender or for women to wear hijab or burqa. It is their business what to do," he explained.
Uzbekistan, Nodirbek Yakubboev refused to shake hands with Vaishali at Tata Steel Chess due to religious reasons.
He had earlier shaken hands with Indian Player like Divya Deshmukh during 2023
Anyways, Vaishali has defeated Nodirbek in the same game!!
pic.twitter.com/nx74UirE1g
— Sumit (@SumitHansd) January 27, 2025
To prevent a similar situation in the eighth-round match against Romania's Irina Bulmaga, Yakubboev said that he informed her beforehand about his religious beliefs.
"Today I told Irina Bulmaga about it. She agreed to it. But when I came to the playing hall, the arbiters told me that I should at least do Namaste as a gesture. In the games with Divya and Vaishali I couldn't tell them about it before the game and there was an awkward situation," he added.
The 23-year-old lost the match against Vashali, who did not offer a handshake after beating the Uzbek player. The Uzbek, however, won against Bulmaga in the eighth round and is currently on four points after eight rounds in the Challengers' section.
Vaishali, on the other hand, is in sixth with 4.5 points after a draw with Dutch player Arthur Pijpers in the eighth rounds.