The Maldives government has suspended three deputy ministers after they made derogatory remarks about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social media.
Malsha Shareef, Mariyam Shiuna and Abdulla Mahzoom Majid, who all worked for the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Information and Arts, were disciplined for their anti-Modi comments on social media, a senior government official told Reuters on Sunday.
The three have variously described Modi as a “clown”, “terrorist” and “puppet of Israel” on social media platform X in response to a video promoting tourism in Lakshadweep, the Indian Union Territory in the Arabian Sea.
In the Maldives, some saw Modi’s visit as an attempt to lure tourists away from the globally popular Maldives, whose 1,192 islands in the Indian Ocean are dotted with luxury resorts.
According to Indian media reports, the Indian High Commission in the Maldives has raised the issue with the Maldivian government.
Some Indian celebrities including Bollywood actors and sports stars expressed their displeasure with the remarks made by the Maldivian officials.
In a statement on Sunday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives confirmed that it was aware of derogatory remarks on social media platforms directed at foreign leaders and high-ranking individuals.
“These views are personal and do not represent the views of the Maldivian government,” the statement said.
A senior administration official told AFP that Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu had ordered an investigation.
The official said Muizzu is concerned about the impact because Indians are the largest group of foreign visitors to the Maldives, where tourism accounts for nearly one-third of the economy.
Chinese trip
The dispute comes days after it was announced that President Muizzu would visit China. On Friday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Muiz will visit China from January 8 to 12. Both India and China are competing for influence in the region.
Muizzu, who won the presidential election in September, campaigned to change the Maldives’ “India first” policy, promising to remove India’s small military presence of about 75 personnel. Last month, he said India had agreed to withdraw its troops from the Maldives.
However, after coming to power, Muizzu toned down his anti-Indian rhetoric and declared that he would not upset the regional balance by replacing Indian forces with Chinese troops.
