People are still uninstalling MakeMyTrip and boycotting its website, two days after its co-founder Keyur Joshi apologised for saying on Twitter that he would eat beef in defiance of the Centre’s ban on sale of cattle for slaughter. Joshi had on Wednesday found himself facing severe criticism for his comments.
#BoycottMMT and #BoycottMMT trended on Twitter after Joshi tweeted that though he was a strong supporter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a vegetarian, he would now eat beef to support “freedom for food” in India. Joshi later deleted his account.
In response, Bharatiya Janata Party supporters started tweeting with the hashtag #BoycottMakeMyTrip and #BoycottMMT, asking others to uninstall the company’s mobile application as well as give it the lowest rating on the mobile app store.
At least six of those who tweeted with #BoycottMakeMyTrip are followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter via his personal account, said a report in The Indian Express.
MakeMyTrip in an official statement later distanced itself from its co-founder’s views, and said he no longer works with the company. However, some Twitter users pointed out that Joshi was still listed as a member of the Board of Directors on the company website.
BJP supporters continued to trend #BoycottMMT, even 24 hours after the travel booking company had distanced itself from Joshi’s tweets. People tweeted screenshots of the uninstalled app, one-star ratings and negative reviews they had posted about MakeMyTrip.
A campaign had earlier been launched against Snapdeal in 2015 after its brand ambassador Aamir Khan spoke about “rising intolerance” in the country. Similarly, Indians started uninstalling Snapchat after its founder said India was a poor country.
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