'Boycott Maldives': What we know so far?

India, one of the Maldives' main tourist revenue streams, is boycotting the country after three of its officials made fun of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Indian celebrities and citizens have been urging people to avoid the sun-kissed getaway in favor of their own beaches. (Photo/ Agencies)

Modi uploaded pictures of himself snorkelling and walking along a beach in Lakshadweep, a southern Indian island chain, off the coast of Kerala, to social media platform X. This sparked a controversy. (Photo/ Twitter)

Though Modi did not specifically name the Maldives in his post, his praise of the stunning landscape of the lesser-known islands may have been seen as to lure tourists there rather than the Maldives. (Photo/ Agencies)

The first to respond to the post were Maryam Shiuna, Malsha Shareef, and Mahzoom Majid, three deputy ministers in the ministry of youth affairs. They referred to PM Modi as a "puppet of Israel" and claimed that open defecation was occurring in multiple locations across India in now-deleted tweets. (Photo/ Agencies)

Tourism is the largest industry in the Maldives, accounting for 28% of its GDP and more than 60% of its foreign exchange receipts. Over 90% of government tax revenue flows in from import duties and tourism-related taxes. (Photo/ Agencies)

According to the latest data released by the tourism ministry of Maldives, around 18 lakh people visited the archipelago in 2023, including 2,09,198 lakh Indians, followed by Russians (2,09,146), Chinese (1,87,118), English (1,55,730) and Germans (1,35,090). Tourists from India accounted for 11% of all foreigners that flew to the Maldives in 2023, making Indians the largest contributor to the island nation's economy. (Photo/ Agencies)

Several Indian netizens took to social media to call out the racist remarks against Indians and the PM. Hashtags such as #ExploreIndianIslands and #MaldivesOut also trended on X (formerly Twitter). Several celebrities took to social media to support the outrage against the Maldives for the vitriol against India. Amitabh Bachchan also came out in support of the islands of Lakshadweep and Andaman. (Photo/ Agencies)

​The call for boycotting Maldives took a political turn when information and broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur echoed the sentiment, encouraging people to explore India's tourist hotspots. Thakur highlighted that PM Modi's moments in Lakshadweep were creating waves, leading to speculation about the potential "weaponization of tourism" against the pro-China administration in Male. (Photo/ Agencies)

The incident comes at a sensitive time, as Maldives president Mohamed Muizzu embarks on a five-day visit to China, his first as president following his election win last October. Muizzu is known for his pro-China stance and pledged to end his predecessor’s “India first” policy in a region where New Delhi and Beijing vie for influence. (Photo/ Agencies)