Quick Glance
● The Maldivian Deputy Minister commented derogatorily on the Indian PM.
● Indians started the campaign ‘Boycott Maldives.’
● Maldivian President Muizzu suspended the three Deputy Ministers after the controversy.
India-Maldives Controversy
After returning from the official tour to China, President Muizzu is attacking Mode against India. One of his statements again raised eyebrows. He said that the Maldives is a small country, but India doesn’t have a license to bully us. President Muizzu said India should leave its military in the Maldives before March 15. Indian military personnel, however, are very few in the Maldives; that is, about 80. They provide training to the Moldavian troops regarding rescue operations.
In his tour, Muizzu appealed to China to become the number one country in terms of tourism in the Maldives. China and the Maldives signed an agreement for $50 million to develop an integrated tourism zone in the Indian Ocean. He also appreciates the Belt and Road Initiative of China.
India-Maldives controversy started after the derogatory remarks by the Maldivian Minister against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Maldivian high commissioner was summoned on January 7 by Indian officials and told to take the rightful action against those members who were at the center of controversy. India wants ministers to be dismissed, not just suspended.
The Timeline of the India-Maldives Conflict
● On January 2 and 3, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on a tour of Lakshadweep to inaugurate some projects. In a video in which he described the beauty of Lakshadweep, one of the X users tweeted that ” Lakshadweep will replace the Maldives in terms of tourism. It will be a setback to the new Maldives’s government, which is a puppet in the hands of China.”
● In response to this tweet, member of the Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM) Zahid Rameez said that ” India can’t compete with the Maldives in terms of the services they provide. How can they be so clean? There is a permanent smell in the rooms.” PPM is the ruling party of the Maldives. After this racist tweet by Zahid Rameez, Indians criticised him a lot.
● To put the fuel in this controversy, Minister Mariyam Shiuna, who is Deputy Minister of Youth Empowerment, Information, and Arts, called India Prime Minister Modi a clown and puppet in the hands of Israel. Maldivia’s citizens also criticised their own minister for this derogatory remark. The former President of the Maldives also slammed Mariyam Shiuna for using appalling language against the Indian PM. After this backlash, she deleted the post.
● It is to be noted that the current President Mohamed Muizzu of the Maldives won the 2023 elections with the slogan India Out. He is closely allied with China. After winning the elections, he went to Turkey and China, and both of these countries are against Indian welfare.
● The Foreign Ministry of the Maldives said that these remarks are personal and don’t represent the views of the Maldivian government. On Sunday, Mohamed Muizzu suspended three deputy ministers: Maryam Shiuna, Mahzoom Majid, and Malsha Shareef.
In response to this conflict, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar said that it can’t be guaranteed that every country will support India every day.
Information about Lakshadweep
Lakshadweep is a union territory of India. It is also known as the Laccadives. Its capital is Kavaratti. It is made up of 36 islands. The total area of this island is 32 sq km. It is located in the Arabian Sea. The official languages of Lakshadweep are Malayalam and English. The total population of this island is about 64000, with the majority of the Muslim population. Muslims comprised 96% of the total population.
Information about the Maldives
The Maldives is an island country. It is located in the Indian Ocean. The capital of the Maldives is Male. It comprises 1200 small islands. The total population of the Maldives is 4.5 lakhs. Islam is the state religion of this country. At present, it is ruled by President Mohamed Muizzu.
The contribution of the tourism sector to the GDP of the Maldives is about 28%.
Effects of India-Maldives Controversy
1. Indians are boycotting their trips to the Maldives for holidays. It will lead to a great loss to the Maldives, as in 2021, the total number of Indians who went to the Maldives was 2.9 lakhs, whereas in 2022 it was 2.4 lakhs. Indians canceled about 8000 hotel bookings and 2500 flights to Maldives.
2. After India-Maldives Controversy, the word Lakshadweep was trending on Google for 2 days. It will promote tourism in Lakshadweep
3. India is the 5th largest trading partner of the Maldives in terms of exports after Thailand, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France, and the 4th largest partner in terms of imports after Oman, the United Arab Emirates, and China. So India-Maldives Controversy will largely affect the foreign trade of the Maldives.
4. In order to boost international and domestic travelers, the TATA group announced that it will establish two Taj restaurants on Lakshadweep Island by 2026.
5. After India-Maldives Controversy, Israel came forward and said that it was ready to start the desalination project in Lakshadweep. Desalination is a process to separate salt from water. It will provide fresh water to tourists for consumption.
In short, we can say that politicians should restrain themselves from making racist and derogatory remarks because they harm the sentiments of common citizens.
What are the reasons for India boycotting the Maldives?
The Deputy Minister, Maryam Shiuna, called Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi a clown and puppet of Israel. Indians were very angry with this remark and started a campaign to boycott the Maldives.
What is the India-Maldives conflict?
When India PM Modi posted a beautiful video of Lakshadweep, a user on microblogging site X said that it would be a setback for the Maldivian tourism sector. In response to this tweet, the member of the ruling party of the Maldives, Zahid Rameez, said that India cannot beat the Maldives in terms of tourism as there is a permanent smell in the rooms.
