Bungled pandemic response, attack on culture: Why Lakshadweep is up in arms against administrator Praful Patel

Lakshadweep MP Mohammad Faizal spoke to India Today and explained why the new administrator has made himself unpopular with the people of the islands.

Social media was set abuzz when #SaveLakshadweep began trending a few days ago. The people of the idyllic islands in the Arabian Sea, who are proud of their land’s beauty and culture, are up in arms against Lakshadweep administrator Praful Patel for a host of reasons from mishandling the Covid-19 pandemic to trying to dictate what the islanders should or should not eat and drink. Lakshadweep MP Mohammad Faizal told India Today that the trouble began when Patel, a former MLA from Gujarat, was appointed the new administrator after his predecessor Dineshwar Sharma passed away. Since then, Patel has proposed to enact a slew of measures that have aggravated the people of Lakshadweep, who claim these actions will destroy their unique lifestyle. Faizal went a step further and charged that the new administrator is “spoiling the democratic fabric of India” with his “arbitrary ways”.