From PM Modi’s Lakshadweep pitch to Maldives envoy meeting MEA officials today, here’s how the controversy unfolded

A day after Maldives govt suspended three of its ministers over ‘derogatory comments’ on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Lakshadweep pitch, High Commissioner met the Ministry of External Affairs officials on Monday.

PM Modi’s posts promoting Lakshadweep as a tourist spot last week had triggered a social media row. With Maldivian ministers contributing to it, the matter has now become a full-blown diplomatic row.

Here’s what has happened since PM Modi’s post on Lakshadweep triggered an unexpected response:

Narendra Modi promotes Lakshadweep tourism

On January 4, PM Modi shared photographs from his visit to the Lakshadweep islands in a series of posts promoting tourism to the Union Territory. Even though Modi did not mention Maldives or any other island nation popular with tourists, it sparked offensive, racist, xenophobic and derogatory comments from Maldivian social media users.

Maldivian ministers put up social media posts with derogatory remarks on PM Modi

The issue escalated when diplomats and top ministers participated in this by repeating and sharing these remarks. Among them were three deputy ministers — Malsha Shareef, Mariyam Shiuna and Abdulla Mahzoom Majid – in the Maldives’ Youth Ministry who criticised Modi for his post on X over his visit to Lakshadweep, inferring that it was an attempt to project the Union Territory as an alternative tourist destination to the Maldives.

Maldives govt distances itself, suspends 3 ministers

The Maldives government distanced itself from the remarks made by the ministers and MPs who joined a social media spat over Lakshadweep vs Maldives in the wake of Prime Minister Modi’s photographs from Lakshadweep. In a statement, it said: “The Government of Maldives is aware of derogatory remarks on social media platforms against foreign leaders and high-ranking individuals. These opinions are personal and do not represent the views of the Government of Maldives.” Hours later the government suspended the three ministers — Mariyam Shiuna, Malsha Shareef and Mahzoom Majid with immediate effect.

Union ministers of India back Modi’s Lakshadweep pitch amid row

Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi and Union Minister G Kishan Reddy on Sunday backed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s posts to promote Lakshadweep tourism after three now-suspended Maldivian ministers made derogatory comments against PM Modi following his posts.

Highlighting that Indians should travel to tourist destinations in the country, Lekhi said: “We have to take pride in our history and also take steps to make India ‘atmanirbhar’.”

“There is no need to visit New Zealand or Switzerland. Everything is in Lakshadweep,” the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Development for the North Eastern region G Kishan Reddy said. Meanwhile, Congress leader Salman Khurshid said that everything could be resolved through dialogue, refusing to discuss the matter further.

Maldives envoy meets MEA officials

The High Commissioner of Maldives to India Ibrahim Shaheeb met officials of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Monday. According to a report by news agency PTI, the MEA officials conveyed concern over the remarks.

#BoycottMaldvies trend on social media

Consequently, there were posts on social media with #BoycottMaldives trending, which claiming that some Indians are cancelling their scheduled trip to the Maldives in view of the diplomatic row.

What travel platforms say

India-based online travel company MakeMyTrip Monday said it has observed a 3,400 per cent increase in on-platform searches for Lakshadweep ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the islands. Meanwhile, EaseMyTrip said it has suspended all flight bookings to the island nation on its website “in solidarity” with India.

In a series of posts on X, EaseMyTrip CEO Nishant Pitti said: “Water & beaches of Lakshadweep are as good as Maldives/Seychelles. We at @EaseMyTrip will come up with crazy special-offers to promote this pristine destination that our PM @narendramodi has recently visited!” He also asked travellers “to discover the enchanting beauty of Ayodhya and the pristine allure of Lakshadweep” and “Say no to Maldives bookings and explore the wonders of Ayodhya and Lakshadweep”.

Embark on a journey with @EaseMyTrip to discover the enchanting beauty of Ayodhya and the pristine allure of Lakshadweep! Immerse yourself in rich culture and breathtaking landscapes. Say no to Maldives bookings and explore the wonders of Ayodhya and Lakshadweep. Watch our video… https://t.co/IQC3kukCtQ

— Nishant Pitti (@nishantpitti) January 8, 2024

What facts say

According to official figures by the Maldives’ government, Indian tourists have consistently remained among the top ten nationalities who travel to the island every year. In 2023 alone, among the tourists who travelled to the Maldives, Indians formed the largest group of tourists with over 200,000 travellers.

— With PTI inputs

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