India and Beyond

Indian Foreign Minister Trolled on Twitter by Fellow Countrymen

July 6, 2018
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Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj was trolled over Social Media Twitter by a targeted group of fellow countrymen who were unhappy on alleged humiliation of an interfaith couple by a Passport Officer in capital of India's Northern State,Uttar Pradesh. Media reports across India suggests that a Hindu wife along with her Muslim husband went up to said Passport Officer to get both of their passport renewed when the incident happened. They complained to Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi that the Passport Officer Vikas Mishra not only humiliated them but even asked to Muslim husband to convert in to Hinduism and also angered on him for marrying a Hindu girl. Ministry of External Affairs in India soon stepped in and transferred the said Passport Officer to another neighboring town of Gorakhpur in same state.
Then started the trolling as the TV Media started beaming in bytes and visuals of couples in trouble. The instant news triggered Twitter followers of Sushma Swaraj to pinpoint her to the extent of abusing.This continued for days. TV News media in India who had broken this story remained silent on language and abuses of Twitter followers and some news men even smelled Prime Minister Office's hatched plan in this whole issue.
Sushma her self came out and spoke about issue days after

Shameful is a small word... More power to you @SushmaSwaraj ji and respect for you has gone up many times. Wish we could have even half of your grace and dignity. Please stay as calm and strong as you can be

In a very decent way she condemned language used by her followers

लोकतंत्र में मतभिन्नता स्वाभाविक है. आलोचना अवश्य करो. लेकिन अभद्र भाषा में नहीं. सभ्य भाषा में की गयी आलोचना ज़्यादा असरदार होती है.

But when one of the follower challenged her to dare to block her she even took that step too by blocking that fan immediately.

Sushma Swaraj✔@SushmaSwaraj

Intezaar kyon ? Lijiye block kr diya.

Sonam Mahajan✔@AsYouNotWish

Yeh good governance dene aaye the. Yeh lo bhai, achhe din aa gaye hain. @SushmaSwaraj ji, I was once a fan and fought against those who abused you, ab aap please, mujhe bhi block kar ke, inaam dijiye. Intezaar rahegaa. https://twitter.com/weuttarpradesh/status/1013763699444772875

9:29 AM - Jul 3, 2018

When I Asked whether the Ministry of External Affairs is contemplating taking any action against the trolls,Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had said, "The EAM (External Affairs Minister) has responded to thosemalicious tweets and the trolling which she was subjected to in her own way and in a manner which she deemed fit. I don't think I have anything further to add on that."

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