A large number of Indians have reportedly cancelled their trips to the Maldives after some Maldivian politicians including Ministers made crass and Hinduphobic commentary on Indians and insulting barbs at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his Lakshadweep visit. The recent diplomatic row started when jittery Maldivian social media users and politicians made deplorable comments about PM Modi’s Lakshadweep visit.
It is important to note that while Indian social media users asserted that PM Modi’s Lakshadweep visit was a development push to boost tourism in the region. Several users also argued that Lakshadweep could potentially replace Maldives as a tourist option for Indians. However, PM Modi didn’t mention Maldives at all.
Yet, fearing a hit to its tourism sector on which the Maldivian economy has a substantive dependence, Maldivian users and politicians indulged in racial attacks leading to a massive outrage among Indians.
Hashtags like #BoycottMaldives are trending on Indian social media platforms. Taking to X, several social media users have claimed that they have cancelled their planned visit to the Island nation in the Indian Ocean citing the Maldivian Minister’s uncalled-for remarks on Indians and the Indians, including some of them sharing screenshots of their scheduled tickets.
A Twitter user asserted, “I had planned a vacation to Maldives in February, I’m going to cancel the same and visit a place domestically. Will not let my money go to someone who hates my country.”
Another user claimed, “I went to the Maldives few months back and with the things going around . I wish I hadn’t gone…I gifted my Niece her honeymoon package and I have now asked my agent to cancel. Yes am losing 50k in process but it’s worth it.”
Some users also shared screenshots reflecting the schedule of their planned trip to the Island nation.
According to an Independent content creator and YouTuber Abhi, around 8000+ hotel bookings and 2000+ flights have been cancelled, however the numbers could not be verified independetendtly.
Notably, Mariyam Shiuna, Deputy Minister of Youth Empowerment, Information, and Arts – who has now been suspended by the Maldivian government for her comments on PM Modi – recently made insulting remarks against PM Modi, referring to him as a ‘clown’ and a ‘puppet of Israel’ while responding to PM Modi’s visit to Lakshadweep Islands.
In the post which was later deleted, Shiuna wrote, “What a clown. The puppet of Israel Mr Narendra diver with a life jacket #VisitMaldives.”
The post was deleted after backlash on X (formerly Twitter) where Indian social media users slammed the Maldives government officials, including Shiuna, for their crass remarks against the Indian Prime Minister for sharing pictures of his visit from the Lakshadweep Island. It is worth noting that PM Modi did not mention the Maldives anywhere in his tweets. In yet another post, Shiuna tweeted that the Maldives does not need the Indian Military’s presence in the region.
Similarly, on 5th January, Zahid Rameez, a Council member of the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) took to the microblogging site X to mock Indians. The PPM member’s highly racist remark against Indians came in response to a post by popular X user Mr Sinha, where he shared pictures of PM Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Lakshadweep. Indian netizens slammed the leader for making racial commentary.
In response to Mr Sinha’s post, Zahid Rameez wrote on 5th January, “The move is great. However, the idea of competing with us is delusional. How can they provide the service we offer? How can they be so clean? The permanent smell in the rooms will be the biggest downfall.”
It is important to note that several Maldivian Politicians including former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed had called out their colleagues and condemned their act. Condemning the derogatory language used by some of the country’s officials against PM Narendra Modi, Former President Nasheed said that the language used by the minister Mariyam Shiuna was “appalling” and said India is a “key ally” for the security and prosperity of Maldives.