Hours after yoga guru Baba Ramdev tweeted in support of industrial group Vedanta on Monday over the closure of its Sterlite copper smelter plant in Tamil Nadu's Thoothukudi, irate users on Facebook and Twitter started calling for a boycott of Ramdev's Patanjali brand.
Ramdev, who had recently travelled to the UK and conducted yoga sessions there, had tweeted on Monday that he had met Vedanta owner Anil Agarwal and posted a photograph. He also “saluted his (Agarwal's) contribution in the national building process by creating lacs of jobs and economic prosperity.”
(2/2) International conspirators created ruckus at one of Vedanta’s plant in South of India through innocent local people. Industries are the temples of development for the nation. They should not be closed
— Swami Ramdev (@yogrishiramdev) June 25, 2018
Ramdev tweeted, “International conspirators created ruckus at one of Vedanta’s plant in South of India through innocent local people. Industries are the temples of development for the nation. They should not be closed.”
Ramdev has consistently used the 'nationalist' plank to promote Patanjali products. While his tweets on the Sterlite issue also this reflect this, Ramdev's comments will be seen as paradoxical as Vedanta has its headquarters in the UK. Soon after his tweets appeared, social media users, many using Tamil, condemned Ramdev and called for a boycott of Patanjali.
Earlier Tamil movie star Rajinikanth was heavily criticised for claiming constant protests such as the events in Thoothukudi could make Tamil Nadu a graveyard for investments.
The Tamil Nadu government ordered the permanent shutdown of the Sterlite plant in Thoothukudi in late May after 13 people were killed in police firing on protesters demanding closure of the plant on May 22. Local residents had alleged Sterlite had violated pollution control norms.