Global chains forced to close as Hindu hardliners march in Modi’s home state
- Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, Domino’s Pizza, Pizza Hut and KFC were some of the brands that shut up shop during the protest about social media messages
- The messages were posted last week by Pakistani branches of the firms supporting the country’s Kashmir Solidarity Day; causing anger in India
Hundreds of Hindu nationalist protesters marched in the Indian state of Gujarat on Saturday, prompting the closure of stores owned by several multinational companies caught up in a furore over social media posts supporting disputed Kashmir.
The messages were posted last week by the Pakistani branches of firms including Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, fast food chain Domino’s Pizza and Yum Brand Inc’s Pizza Hut and KFC, which also operate in India.
They were issued by the companies on February 5 to coincide with Pakistan’s Kashmir Solidarity Day, held annually to commemorate the sacrifices of Kashmiris struggling for self-determination, and caused anger among social media users in India.
“These companies cannot be doing business in India and at the same time supporting Pakistan’s stand on Kashmir,” Dinesh Navadiya, national treasurer of Hindu nationalist organisation Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), said during a protest in the city of Surat.
Shouting slogans such as “Kashmir is Ours” and wearing saffron scarves, more than 100 members of Bajrang Dal, another Hindu nationalist group, also joined the protest – one of several held in Gujarat, the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.