Arab outrage: Banglore South MP Tejasvi Surya’s old tweet goes viral

A 2015 tweet by Bangalore South MP Tejasvi Surya, which he later deleted, has gone viral it in the wake of outrage from the Arab world over Islamophobic remarks by Indian nationals.

Screenshots of the controversial tweet, in which he claimed to have quoted right-wing intellectual Tarek Fateh, went viral on social media, evoking widespread condemnation. Demands of action against the MP were also heard.

Mejeb-al-shrika (@MJALSHRIKA), from the Kuwait Institute of Law and Legal Studies, in a tweet sought action against Surya. "Respected Prime minister Narendra Modi, India's relation with the Arab world has been that of mutual respect. Do you allow your parliamentarian to publicly humiliate our women? We expect your urgent punitive action against Tejasvi Surya for his disgraceful comment," he said, attaching a screenshot of the deleted tweet.

According to another Kuwaiti lawyer Mona Alarbash (@MonaAlarbash), "The Indian Parliament(arian)’s deletion of this comment will not forget us of the heinous insult from it. We demand urgent and immediate accountability from Parliament and the government."

Another handle, @MJALSHRIKA wrote: “Respected Prime Minister Narendra Modi your silence on the most outrageous act of your parliamentarian Tejasvi Surya unfolds the cultural norm of your govt. If humiliating Arab women is the new normal, let the Arab world know where our relationship with India stands.”

Surya told DH that the tweet in question was five years old and that it was wrongly attributed to him. “Must I even react to something from when I was not in public life? The same happened even during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. So, I guess this is going to be an annual fixture,” he said.

Surya also found support in Mysore-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha. In Surya’s defence, Simha tweeted: “It’s sick to see Islamic-Liberal ecosystem trying to defame Tejasvi Surya...1. It is not Tejasvi's statement. It is the Tarek Fatah quote against the barbaric practice of female genital mutilation. 2. It is a tweet of 2015, five years before he became MP. 3. Clearly shows mischief..."