'Do not give a rupee to Turkey': Netizens attack Ankara after its viral 'appeal' to Indian tourists

Turkey is in the middle of a social media storm in India, yet again. A letter allegedly from Turkey's department of tourism went viral on X (previously Twitter). In this letter, Ankara addressed a boycott of Turkey by Indian tourists. 

The Turkish tourism department said in its letter: "We therefore confirm that there is no reason to postpone or cancel any trips to Turkiye based on the current situation. All travel operations continue as planned, and there are no restrictions or safety issues affecting Indian guests."

Social media users in India took Turkey to cleaners over its request to Indians to not cancel trips to the country.Business Today could not independently verify the authenticity of this letter.

"Every single Indian in anywhere who has an iota of self respect, who does not wish to be a namak haram to Mother India, must cancel every plan to go to Turkey. The Erdogan govt hates us and have paid for the killing of our countrymen. Do not give a rupee to Turkey," author-historian Hindol Sengupta wrote. 

Replying to Sengupta's tweet, defence expert Sushant Sareen said that Indian tourists should visit Israel, Greece, and Armenia instead of Turkey. He also questioned IndiGo over its codeshare partnership with Turkish Airlines. 

"Turkey is a declared enemy country. Why would any Indian want to travel to that place? Why does @IndiGo6E do business with these Turk terrorists? If you must go, visit Israel which is a friend and where the food and sights are awesome and the people fantastic; go to Greece which has fabulous places and superb food; visit Armenia; go anywhere but to this terrorist supporting country Turkey ruled by a fascist and Islamist kleptocrat Erdogan," Sareen commented. 

"Frankly, we don't give a damn whether Turkey is safe or whether you welcome tourists. You must be mad if you think we want to visit a country whose naked military support for Pakistan and drones have spilled the blood of Indians. Invite Pakistani tourists instead," veteran columnist Vir Sanghvi commented. 

While sharing the letter, angel investor Udit Goenka said: "Don't travel to countries that openly support Pakistan. It's the least we can do, given that those countries are funding Pakistan." 

Replying to Rajeev Chandrasekhar's post, a social media user named Pratik said that India is boycotting Turkey due to its tacit support to Pakistan. 

"Indians boycott Turkey vacations due to its support for Pakistan in the ongoing India-Pak conflict. In 2024, 3.3L Indian tourists visited Turkey, a 20.7% rise from 2023. This boycott will hit Turkey’s tourism hard! Indian power shines on (sic)," he said. 

Replying to Vir Sanghvi's tweet, a user said that they just cancelled an entirely booked holiday in Turkey. "Just cancelled an entirely booked holiday in Turkey. Flights, hotels, car rental... all were booked," the user said. 

Indian tourists are currently boycotting Turkey in response to its backing of Pakistan amid ongoing border tensions between India and Pakistan. Tensions escalated when Turkey supplied drones to Pakistan, which were subsequently used in military actions against India during the night of May 8-9.