Qatar Airways CEO says airline not concerned by calls in India to boycott the airline
Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker has said that the calls in India to boycott the airline were made by “misled” people and that it causes no concern to the national carrier.
“It is being done by a few misled individuals and I don’t want to comment on that. Everybody is free to say whatever they want against anybody,” he told Indian newspaper The Hindu on the sidelines of the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Annual General Meeting in Doha.
Meanwhile, the airline is still considering buying stakes in India’s low-cost giant IndiGo from the parent company, InterGlobe Aviation Ltd.
The company clarified its position in response to #BoycottQatarAirways trending Twitter hashtags in India earlier this month as right-wing Hindus called for a boycott of the Gulf airline after enraged Arab citizens called for a boycott of Indian products on social media.
Muslim countries reacted strongly to derogatory remarks made against the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) by the Indian ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s leaders.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Iran, and Pakistan took strong exception to the insulting remarks, while citizens in Gulf countries called for a boycott of Indian products.
Qatar had demanded a public apology and immediate condemnation of such “Islamophobic” remarks from the Indian Government.