The controversy started following the derogatory comments made by Maldives ministers against India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a series of posts on social media platform X, Maldives ministers Malsha Shareef, Mariyam Shiuna and Abdulla Mahzoom Majid called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a “clown”, “terrorist” and “puppet of Israel”. The remarks came in response to a video shared by PM Modi of his visit to Lakshadweep islands, north of the Maldives. In his posts, PM Modi praised Lakshadweep’s beauty and promoted it as a viable beach destination for tourists.
Soon after the posts from Maldives ministers became viral on X, #BoycottMaldives started trending on social media platforms. Many Indians, including some celebrities, shared social media posts promoting domestic destinations over the Maldives.
The Indian Chamber of Commerce too issued an “appeal to boycott Maldives”. Travel industry veteran Subhash Goyal, who heads ICC’s aviation and tourism committee, has appealed to all Indian trade associations to “stop promoting Maldives in view of the anti-India feelings expressed by ministers of Maldives.” “Please divert all such queries to Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar Islands which are even better than Maldives in many ways.. other destinations that can be promoted in the Indian Ocean region are Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Bali, Phuket etc,” he said.