Maldives suspends three officials for insulting Indian PM Modi

The government of the Maldives has suspended three deputy ministers after they made derogatory remarks about India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social media.

The government of the Maldives has suspended three deputy ministers after they made derogatory remarks about India’s 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 comments against Modi on social media, a senior government official told Reuters on Sunday.

The three had variously described Modi as a “clown”, “terrorist” and “puppet of Israel” on social media platform X, in response to a video of promoting tourism in Lakshadweep, an Indian Union territory in the Arabian Sea.

In the Maldives, some viewed Modi’s visit as trying to draw tourists away from the globally popular Maldives, whose 1,192 islands in the Indian Ocean are dotted with luxury resorts.