Team Herald
PANJIM: Indian travel businesses have begun taking unilateral action in response to Turkey’s public support for Pakistan following India’s military strikes in May 2025. Goa Villas, a well-known luxury holiday rental provider, has become the second Indian company—after Go Homestays—to announce it will no longer extend services to Turkish nationals.
Goa Villas issued a statement on social media platform X, citing Turkey’s “non-cooperative stance in the current global scenario involving India and Pakistan” as the reason behind its decision and affirmed its solidarity with India.
Go Homestays, meanwhile, took a parallel step by severing its partnership with Turkish Airlines, announcing that the airline will no longer be included in any of their international travel packages. These developments follow India’s military operation, codenamed ‘Operation Sindoor’, which targeted terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in retaliation for a terrorist attack in Pahalgam that claimed the lives of 26 Indian citizens.
The travel sector’s move is seen as a reaction to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s remarks offering diplomatic backing to Pakistan in the aftermath of the strikes. Erdoğan praised Pakistan’s “calm and restrained policies,” prompting widespread anger among the Indian public.
While there is no official government directive banning Turkish nationals from entering India or using Indian services, a growing number of private companies are reportedly refusing to do business with Turkish citizens. This emerging pattern has raised legal and ethical concerns, with some questioning the legitimacy of such refusals in the absence of formal sanctions.
Indian social media has been flooded with calls to boycott Turkish companies and tourism, urging local businesses to distance themselves from Turkish interests. The situation has added to a broader wave of nationalism and tension in the region.
Though not Pakistan’s primary arms supplier—China holds that distinction—Turkey has in recent years played a notable role in supplying weapons to Pakistan. The symbolic and material aspects of this support have become increasingly contentious amid heightened regional friction.