800 members of Gujarati group cancel trip to Turkey amid boycott clamour: ‘Least we can do for India'
The Jain Lotus Group from Ahmedabad, Gujarat, has joined the growing chorus of those boycotting Turkey following the country's recent show of support for Pakistan. More than 800 members of the group had planned a 12-day trip to Turkey post-Diwali – which now stands cancelled, Mid-Day reported.
The Jain Lotus Group is the latest to join the clamour against visiting Turkey, after prominent travel platforms like EaseMyTrip and Ixigo issued advisories discouraging travel to these nations. 'Bookings for Azerbaijan and Turkey decreasing by 60% (over the last week) while cancellations have surged by 250% during the same period,' Reuters quoted a spokesperson for MakeMyTrip as saying.
Turkey and Azerbaijan are facing widespread backlash for showing support towards Pakistan following heightened tensions between India and Pakistan in the wake of Operation Sindoor – a retaliatory strike against terror targets after the Pahalgam attack.
The Jain Lotus Group, an Ahmedabad-based organisation with a membership of over 1,000 couples, had scheduled a trip to Turkey following Diwali, according to a report by Mid-Day.
'We have cancelled the trip due to this. About 800 people from our Jain Lotus Group were to go to Turkey after Diwali. We had planned a tour of 12 days and 11 nights. We had decided to go to four places in Turkey, including Cappadocia and Istanbul.
'All the members had planned to reach Turkey in groups of 80 people every third day, not on the same day,' Shah explained.
'However, considering the current situation between India and Pakistan, the core committee, including our president and joint secretary, took everyone's individual opinions and the committee jointly decided that we would not go to Turkey to tour, a country that supports our country's enemy, Pakistan,' said the treasurer.
Shah said: "Least we could do for India. We cannot go to war as an army, but we can do this much in support of the country, right?' he said.
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