Travel platforms in India are clashing amid Turkey-Azerbaijan row after many of them announced suspension of booking to the two destinations due to their unsupportive stance towards India amid border tensions with Pakistan.
Platforms are calling out the availability of flight bookings on other apps. For instance, flight bookings for Istanbul and Baku are available on platforms including MakeMyTrip and Cleartrip.
Flipkart owned Cleartrip last week had issued a statement saying that in solidarity with India's national interest sovereignty, Flipkart Travel and Cleartrip are suspending all flight, hotel and holiday package bookings to Turkey and Azerbaijan. "Our stand is clear. Our loyalty, unwavering. India Comes First!"
MakeMyTrip on May 14 issued a statement saying that "in solidarity with our nation and out of deep respect for our armed forces, we strongly support this sentiment and advise all against all non-essential travel to Azerbaijan and Turkey. We have already discontinued all promotions and offers on our platform to discourage tourism to these two destinations."
The same day, EaseMyTrip, which has also advised travellers against travelling to Turkey and Azerbaijan but have not suspended bookings as Istanbul serves as a layover to some European destinations, posted on social media that with Chinese investors backing some travel platforms in India, the data of Indian defence personnel is not safe.
EaseMyTrip's founder and chairman, Nishant Pitti in a post on X said that "Indian Armed Forces book discounted tickets via a platform majorly owned by China, entering Defence ID, route & date. Our enemies know where our soldiers are flying."
He attached screenshots of MakeMyTrip platform specifying the discounts the online travel aggregator (OTA) gives to defense personnel like Rs 200 off by using code MMTDefence.
China's largest online travel agency Ctrip is one of the early investors in MakeMyTrip and had increased its stake in the travel firm to 49 percent in 2019.
While the Azerbaijan and Turkey troubles have turned into a travel turf war in India, the tourism board of Turkey's capital city has urged Indians to not boycott the destination.
" ... vast majority of the local population is unaware of the conflict taking place between India and Pakistan, and it has no bearing on daily life or the tourism environment here. Indian travellers are welcomed and treated with the utmost courtesy across Türkiye-in hotels, restaurants, shops, and all tourist attractions -just as they have always been. We therefore confirm that there is no reason to postpone or cancel any trips to Türkiye based on the current situation. All travel operations continue as planned, and there are no restrictions or safety issues affecting Indian guests. We remain fully committed to ensuring the comfort, safety, and satisfaction throughout your stay in Türkiye," said Department of Tourism, Ankara, in a statement.
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