Former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed on Sunday denounced the island nation minister’s comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the latter’s recent Lakshadweep visit. Hailing India as a “key ally” of the security and prosperity of the archipelago nation, Nasheed condemned minister Mariyam Shiuna’s remarks as “appalling” against Modi.

“What appalling language by Maldives Government official Mariyam Shiuna towards the leader of a key ally, that is instrumental for the Maldives’ security and prosperity,” he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Nasheed further urged President Mohamed Muizzu and his government to distance themselves from these comments and assure India these comments do not reflect the government policy.

“The Mohamed Muizzu government must distance itself from these comments and give clear assurance to India they do not reflect government policy (sic),” the former president added.

Shiuna, Maldives’ deputy minister of Youth Empowerment had dubbed PM Modi as “clown” and “puppet” over his recent Lakshadweep visit.

“What a clown. The puppet of Israel Mr Narendra diver with a life jacket #VisitMaldives,” she said in a post on X. The X post was deleted following the row that erupted and backlash on the micro-blogging site.

Besides Shiuna, another minister Zahid Rameez mocked PM Modi. While sharing an X post which claimed that PM Modi’s Lakshadweep visit is a “big setback” for the Maldives and “will boost” tourism in the union territory, Rameez said, “The move is great. However, the idea of competing with us is delusional. How can they provide the service we offer? How can they be so clean? The permanent smell in the rooms will be the biggest downfall”.

Meanwhile, several Indian celebrities and social media influencers, including former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra and social media influencer Sonam Mahajan, joined an online campaign which called for a boycott of the Maldives and its tourist spots after the row.

The ongoing tussle started with PM Modi’s visit to Lakshadweep, which spurred interest in the union territory island among travel enthusiasts.

During his visit, PM Modi shared several pictures, including an ‘exhilarating experience’ after he tried his hand at snorkelling. In his visit to Lakshadweep, He also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of several development projects worth more than ₹1,150 crore.

He also inaugurated the Kochi-Lakshadweep Islands Submarine Optical Fiber Connection (KLI – SOFC) project and the Low-Temperature Thermal Desalination (LTTD) plant at Kadmat.