A social media spat between Maldivian politicians, government officials, and Indian social media users was sparked by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's weekend tweets on X, which promoted tourism to the Lakshadweep islands. The prime minister mentioned "the stunning beauty of its islands" and said that "Lakshadweep has to be on your list for those who wish to embrace the adventurer in them" in a post that mentioned his visit to the Union Territory earlier this week.
Following PM Modi's post, a number of well-known Maldivian social media users replied with insulting, xenophobic, racist, and disparaging remarks directed against both the prime minister of India and all Indians in general. One of them, Mariyam Shiuna, the deputy minister for youth empowerment, information, and the arts in the Maldives, wrote: "What a clown." The Israeli puppet, Mr. Narendra, wearing a life jacket. #Malidues #SunnySideOfLife. Shiuna also likened India to cow excrement in a since-deleted article. Malsha Sharif, Shiuna's colleague and another deputy in the Maldives' Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Information, and Arts, made similar disparaging remarks against India and the Lakshadweep tourism promotion. Additionally, a member of the ruling Progressive Party of the Maldives tweeted a photo that they said showed an island resort in the Maldives and were thought to be of the French Polynesian islands, the Bora Bora islands.
Subsequently, a few Maldivian news websites specialized in local news ran dramatic headlines in the local dialect, claiming that India had launched a campaign against Maldivian tourists. Other Maldivian social media users quickly caught on to this and joined the trend, making disparaging remarks and insults directed at India and Indians as well as drawing analogies between the Maldives and the Lakshadweep islands. After President Mohamed Muizzu entered office in November of last year, the problem got worse when high-ranking diplomats and ministers in his administration started distributing and repeating offensive language and content and urged others to follow suit. Many immediately got into heated debates and altercations with unidentified Indian social media users.
