Far away from Sydney, the Harbhajan family in Punjab can't understand why the off-spinner has been singled out after a racial abuse row rocked the country.
Bhajji, as he is popularly called, has been banned for three Test matches for racially abusing Australia's Andrew Symonds.
A usually reticent Harbhajan family termed the decision "totally unjustified."
"This is totally unjusified. It would have been all right if the other person (read Symonds), too, had been handed down the same treatment. It is unfair to my son," Harbhajan's mother Avtar told journalists her residence in Punjab.
Meanwhile, in New Delhi, former Indian skipper Bishen Singh Bedi told rediff.com that "we were being carried away by emotions and we should let the things where they are".
"I think Bucknor is being targeted. We should target the International Cricket Council which has failed to induct new umpires over a period of time. There are only eight umpires on the ICC panel, and they are overburdened," he said
Bedi said that this kind of human errors would take place whether in England, New Zealand or even India.
"I have seen worse kind of umpiring when I was playing cricket. Enough has been said and now let things settle down," he said.
However, Bedi complimented Indian captain Anil Kumble for maintaining his calm in such an explosive situation.
"I think he showed tremendous patience by not over-reacting to the developments on the ground and ensure that the match is taken to its logical conclusion," Bedi said.
