'5% folks seem aggravated': EaseMyTrip CEO defends suspension of flight bookings to Maldives

In the wake of a diplomatic spat between India and the Maldives, Nishant Pitti, CEO of EaseMyTrip, took to X to explain the company's decision to suspend all flight bookings to the Maldives. The move to suspend flights came after three ministers from the Maldives cabinet made derogatory comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi following his visit to Lakshadweep last week. EaseMyTrip said it has suspended all flight bookings to the island nation on its website “in solidarity” with India.

In his post on X, he said that the turbulence started after the newly elected President of the Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, who won the November 2023 election on an "India Out" campaign platform, requested the removal of Indian military personnel from the island nation by March 15, 2024.

"Nov 2023, President of Maldives won election on plank of "India Out" campaign. They wanted India & its tourist OUT, since last few years. Being 2nd largest tourism provider to Maldives, we merely fecilitated what majority Maldivan asked for.
 This new Maldivian govt has been clearly pro-China, and it's only fair that they earn money from Chinese tourist rather than Indians now," he wrote on X.

According to Nishant Pitti, the majority of Maldivians had been asking for a reduction in Indian tourists, and as the second-largest tourism provider to the Maldives, EaseMyTrip facilitated this request. Despite the potential loss of revenue and alienation of some users, the company experienced a surge in support from the Indian public, with app downloads increasing by 280% in the last week.

“When we took this decision, it was risky to let go of sizeable revenue and alienating a chunk of userbase.  But we are thankful to 95% people of India, who are supporting us, our app download increased by 280% last week,” he added.

Pitti emphasized that the decision was not politically motivated but was taken to uphold the dignity of India. He suggested that the same action would have been taken regardless of the ruling government in India, as it aligned with the company's values. 

“Remaining 5% folks seem aggravated, as they are seeing it politically, and probably it's not matching with their political ideology,” he further wrote.

The Maldives, situated south of India's Lakshadweep Islands in the Indian Ocean, has historically had close ties with India. However, the recent political shift in the Maldives has seen the government take a more pro-China stance, leading to tensions with India. The controversy was further fueled by derogatory remarks made by Maldivian government officials against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which resulted in a backlash from Indian citizens and a call for a boycott of the Maldives as a travel destination.

The company's stance has garnered widespread support from the netizens, reflecting a strong sense of national pride and solidarity. "This is nothing but sheer BLAMEGAME by Maldives although they started using filth and abuse PM. They getting the results of their arrogance and bad behaviour towards Bharat & their PM.You continue your good work @nishantpitti ji 👍," a user wrote. Another one commented, "Thanks Nishant for voicing out nationalism over political ideology. You really deserve the applause and standing ovation." A third user wrote, "You will reap the benefit in the long run. You have my full support in terms of hotel and flight bookings this year. Keep it up."

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