A
Apoorva Devanshi
Guest
India voiced concern on Sunday over Mariyam Shiuna, the Maldivian Deputy Minister for Youth Empowerment, making recent “derogatory” remarks about Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The Indian High Commissioner in Male has apparently made contact with the Maldivian government. This occurred as President Muhammad Muizzu of the Maldives’ administration distanced itself from the remarks made by a number of its ministers.
After mocking Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social media for his recent trip to Lakshadweep, the Maldives “suspended” three Deputy Ministers on Sunday. Following a strong protest over the matter from the Indian High Commission in Male. The foreign ministry of the Maldives stated without naming the ministers that the comments “against foreign leaders and high-ranking individuals” did not reflect the views of the Maldivian government.
However the Local media had by then identified the suspended ministers as – Malsha Shareef, Abdulla Mahzoom Majid, and Mariyam Shiuna. They had called Modi a puppet and a clown from Israel. Another Minister said that Indian beaches aren’t as clean as their beaches and that Indian beaches will have to face a lot of challenges to compete with Maldivian beaches. Even the idea of competition was mocked by Rameez, who said, “While promoting Lakshadweep is commendable, the belief that they can match our level of service is simply delusional.”
All this started a social media frenzy wherein Indian citizens strongly condemned Maldives demeaning remarks. Within no time several Indian celebrities and social media influencers joined the “Boycott Maldives” campaign.
Sachin Tendulkar joined the online campaign to promote Indian beaches and tourist destinations. Similarly, actor John Abraham tweeted an invitation to travel to Lakshadweep using the hashtag #exploreindianislands.
Actress Shraddha Kapoor posted a stunning photo of the Lakshadweep Islands on X along with the caption, “All these photos and memes are giving me major FOMO right now. Because Lakshadweep boasts such beautiful beaches and coastlines as well as a vibrant local culture, I’m about to plan an impulsive chhutti (holiday). Why not #ExploreIndianIslands this year?”
Following his Bollywood colleagues Salman Khan tweeted-
Soon Nishant Pitti, CEO of EaseMyTrip joined the campaign by suspending all Maldives flights.
Many Indians cancelled their Maldives trip in response to the racist remarks. Over 8000 hotel bookings and 2500 air tickets to Maldives were cancelled. Given the fact that Maldives economy is heavily dependent on Tourism and the fact that Indian tourists accounted for the largest number of tourists to the Maldives (2,09,198), followed by Russia (2,09,146) and China (1,87,118). The “Boycott Maldives” will negatively impact their tourism industry.
Interestingly, all this controversy happened at a time when the two countries are already facing a strained relationship. Things are tense since President Mohamed Muizzu took office in November 2023. Viewed as a pro-China politician, he not only became the first Maldivian president to not visit India first but also became the first to travel to China than India after assuming office. The former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed and other prominent Maldivian leaders like former Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid and former President Ibrahim Solih condemned the Deputy Ministers’ actions.
In a post on X, Nasheed mentioned the “appalling language” that Shiuna had used “towards the leader of a key ally that is instrumental for Maldives’ security and prosperity” and stated that Muizzu’s government needed to provide India with a “clear assurance they do not reflect government policy.”
Its been reported that as per official law enforcement data there are about 1,400 “religious extremists” in a country of only 5,00,000 population. The Indian government has handled the recent provocation from Maldives in a diplomatic and a firm manner by condemning and at the same time promoting Lakshadweep.
The post India – Maldives Boycott Row! appeared first on The Jaipur Dialogues.
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The Indian High Commissioner in Male has apparently made contact with the Maldivian government. This occurred as President Muhammad Muizzu of the Maldives’ administration distanced itself from the remarks made by a number of its ministers.
After mocking Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social media for his recent trip to Lakshadweep, the Maldives “suspended” three Deputy Ministers on Sunday. Following a strong protest over the matter from the Indian High Commission in Male. The foreign ministry of the Maldives stated without naming the ministers that the comments “against foreign leaders and high-ranking individuals” did not reflect the views of the Maldivian government.
However the Local media had by then identified the suspended ministers as – Malsha Shareef, Abdulla Mahzoom Majid, and Mariyam Shiuna. They had called Modi a puppet and a clown from Israel. Another Minister said that Indian beaches aren’t as clean as their beaches and that Indian beaches will have to face a lot of challenges to compete with Maldivian beaches. Even the idea of competition was mocked by Rameez, who said, “While promoting Lakshadweep is commendable, the belief that they can match our level of service is simply delusional.”
Boycott Maldives-
All this started a social media frenzy wherein Indian citizens strongly condemned Maldives demeaning remarks. Within no time several Indian celebrities and social media influencers joined the “Boycott Maldives” campaign.
Sachin Tendulkar joined the online campaign to promote Indian beaches and tourist destinations. Similarly, actor John Abraham tweeted an invitation to travel to Lakshadweep using the hashtag #exploreindianislands.
Actress Shraddha Kapoor posted a stunning photo of the Lakshadweep Islands on X along with the caption, “All these photos and memes are giving me major FOMO right now. Because Lakshadweep boasts such beautiful beaches and coastlines as well as a vibrant local culture, I’m about to plan an impulsive chhutti (holiday). Why not #ExploreIndianIslands this year?”
Following his Bollywood colleagues Salman Khan tweeted-
Soon Nishant Pitti, CEO of EaseMyTrip joined the campaign by suspending all Maldives flights.
Many Indians cancelled their Maldives trip in response to the racist remarks. Over 8000 hotel bookings and 2500 air tickets to Maldives were cancelled. Given the fact that Maldives economy is heavily dependent on Tourism and the fact that Indian tourists accounted for the largest number of tourists to the Maldives (2,09,198), followed by Russia (2,09,146) and China (1,87,118). The “Boycott Maldives” will negatively impact their tourism industry.
Geopolitics-
Interestingly, all this controversy happened at a time when the two countries are already facing a strained relationship. Things are tense since President Mohamed Muizzu took office in November 2023. Viewed as a pro-China politician, he not only became the first Maldivian president to not visit India first but also became the first to travel to China than India after assuming office. The former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed and other prominent Maldivian leaders like former Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid and former President Ibrahim Solih condemned the Deputy Ministers’ actions.
In a post on X, Nasheed mentioned the “appalling language” that Shiuna had used “towards the leader of a key ally that is instrumental for Maldives’ security and prosperity” and stated that Muizzu’s government needed to provide India with a “clear assurance they do not reflect government policy.”
Its been reported that as per official law enforcement data there are about 1,400 “religious extremists” in a country of only 5,00,000 population. The Indian government has handled the recent provocation from Maldives in a diplomatic and a firm manner by condemning and at the same time promoting Lakshadweep.
The post India – Maldives Boycott Row! appeared first on The Jaipur Dialogues.
Continue reading...