Carmaker Hyundai is in hot water in India as Hyundai Pakistan's social media handles posted about remembering the "sacrifices of our Kashmiri brothers" on February 5, which Pakistan observes as 'Kashmir Solidarity Day'.
Pakistan observes Kashmir Solidarity Day to show its support for the Kashmiri separatists in India.
"Let us remember the sacrifices of our Kashmiri brothers and stand in support as they continue to struggle for freedom," the social media handles of Hyundai Pakistan posted using the hashtag #KashmirSolidarityDay. While the posts have been deleted now, Indian Twitter users posted the screenshots of the posts on Twitter while asking Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) to explain its stand on the issue. Meanwhile, many Indian users also called for boycotting Hyundai India products.
Meanwhile, HMIL in a statement said that it stands firmly for its "strong ethos of respecting nationalism".
HMIL is a wholly owned subsidiary of South Korea's Hyundai Motor Company. The Korean company has also partnered with Hyundai Nishat (Hyundai Pakistan) for manufacturing, marketing and distribution of its product line in Pakistan.
Meanwhile, many Twitter users also complained that when they sought clarification from HMIL, the Hyundai India handle on Twitter blocked them.
Later, the twitter handles of both Hyundai India and Hyundai Pakistan were changed to protected, restricting users from viewing their tweets.
Without directly addressing the issue, HMIL in its statement said that "unsolicited social media post linking Hyundai Motor India is offending our unparalleled commitment and service to this great country".
"Hyundai Motor India has been committed to Indian market for more than 25 years now and we stand firmly for our strong ethos of respecting nationalism. The unsolicited social media post linking Hyundai Motor India is offending our unparalleled commitment and service to this great country. India is second home to the Hyundai brand and we have zero tolerance policy towards insensitive communication and we strongly condemn any such view. As part of our commitment to India, we will continue our efforts towards the betterment of the country as well as its citizens," the statement said.
Also Read: Audi mulling local production of EVs in India
Also Read: End of an era: Lata Mangeshkar cremated with full state honours