ArleneBelmore12 at 02:00, 30 April 2026

2026-04-30T02:00:09Z

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{{Short description|Social media movement against Narendra Modi}}
{{Recentism|date=December 2025}}
{{use dmy dates|date=July 2023}}
[[File:Narendra Damodardas Modi.jpg|300x300px]]
{{Correct title|#GoBackModi|reason=#}}
'''#GoBackModi''' is a [[hashtag]] and movement that protests and voices opposition against the Indian prime minister [[Narendra Modi]]'s visits to various places, primarily throughout India, and sporadically throughout the world. The hashtag first gained popularity on 12 April 2018, when Modi visited [[Chennai]], [[Tamil Nadu]] to inaugurate a defence exhibition, and has been especially popular in the state ever since.<ref>{{cite news |author=Muralidharan |first=Kavitha |date=1 March 2019 |title=Why Tamil Nadu Says #GoBackModi Every Time He Visits |work=[[The Wire (India)|The Wire]] |url=https://thewire.in/politics/why-tamil-nadu-says-gobackmodi-every-time-he-visits}}</ref> However, the movement's first instance was a Malayalam language variation of the hashtag named '''PoMoneModi''', and has been adopted since May 2016, when Modi was campaigning for elections in Kerala.<ref name=":0">{{cite news|url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/protests-across-chennai-pm-visits-gobackmodi-trends-twitter-worldwide-79440 |title=Protests across Chennai as PM visits, GoBackModi trends on Twitter worldwide |date=12 April 2018 |work=[[The News Minute]]}}</ref>

The hashtag has been prominently used by the [[Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam|DMK]], the current ruling party in the state of Tamil Nadu, and also by notable people like [[Meena Kandasamy]], [[Oviya]] to express dissent against Modi's visits.<ref>{{cite news |author=Venkateswaran |first=Vikram |date=29 January 2019 |title=#GoBackModi: Why Dissing the PM is a Trend in TN |work=[[The Quint]] |url=https://www.thequint.com/elections/social-dangal/gobackmodi-hashtag-why-is-tn-anti-modi-dmk-tamil-identity-politics#read-more}}</ref><ref name="oviya-complaint">{{cite news|url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/tn-bjp-member-files-complaint-against-actor-oviyaa-go-back-modi-tweet-143442 |title=TN BJP member files complaint against actor Oviyaa for 'Go Back Modi' tweet |work=[[The News Minute]] |date=15 February 2021}}</ref> The movement has also had on the ground protests, in places surrounding the areas that Modi visits.<ref name=":0" />

== Background ==
Narendra Modi was elected as the Prime Minister of India in the [[2014 Indian general election]]. Along the span of his tenure, Modi and his party, the [[BJP]]'s statements and decisions were increasingly being seen as opposing and neutralizing all dissent towards the party and its conservative ideologies.<ref>{{cite news |author=Ganguly |first=Meenakshi |date=13 December 2019 |title=Dissent Is 'Anti-National' in Modi's India |work=Human Rights Watch |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/12/13/dissent-anti-national-modis-india}}</ref>

== Movements ==
=== India ===

==== Kerala ====
{{Synthesis|section|date=December 2025}}
Two years after being elected as the prime minister, Modi visited the state of [[Kerala]] in May 2016, to campaign for the BJP in the [[2016 Kerala Legislative Assembly election]]. During a campaign rally, Modi gave a speech in which he compared the infant mortality rate of [[Kerala]] to that of [[Somalia]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/what-does-pm-modi-get-when-he-compares-kerala-somalia-pomonemodi-trend-43051 |title=What does PM Modi get when he compares Kerala to Somalia? A #PoMoneModi trend |date=11 May 2016 |work=The News Minute}}</ref> [[Kerala]] is one of the most religiously heterogeneous states in India, and the [[Kerala model]] has consistently been praised as one of the most socially developed states.At the time of his remarks, IMR of [[Kerala]] was 10 IMR of [[Gujarat]] was 30,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1796436 | title=Status of IMR and MMR in India }}</ref> the average IMR of India was 34 <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.livemint.com/Politics/O4l07Cw3gX3FEwZfS9s8WO/Indias-infant-mortality-rate-declines-8-in-2016.html | title=India's infant mortality rate declines 8% in 2016 | work=mint | date=30 September 2017 | last1=Sharma | first1=Neetu Chandra }}</ref> and [[Somalia]] had an average of 137.This IMR of 10 is best in [[India]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Maya |first=C. |date=2021-10-27 |title=At 6, Kerala's single-digit IMR a great achievement |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/at-6-keralas-single-digit-imr-a-great-achievement/article37195817.ece |access-date=2024-09-11 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}}</ref> Consequently, Modi's statement criticising [[Kerala]]'s social indicators immediately drew strong reactions from all the major political figures, including the Kerala chief minister at the time, [[Oommen Chandy]], who demanded that Modi withdraw his remarks.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/pomonemodi-go-home-kid-tweeple-to-pm-after-kerala-somalia-analogy/story-qef9qR2tFMBIKmUIW45YyK.html |title=#PoMoneModi: 'Go home, kid' Tweeple to PM after Kerala, Somalia analogy |date=11 May 2016 |work=The Hindustan Times}}</ref> The [[BJP]] won one seat that election.<ref>{{cite news |author=Kumar |first=Aswin J. |date=26 March 2021 |title=Kerala elections: BJP spent Rs 43 crore in 2016, won 1 seat |work=The Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/bjp-spent-rs-43cr-in-2016-won-1-seat/articleshow/81694907.cms}}</ref> As another consequence of Modi's remark, a social media campaign took off, making use of the hashtag #PoMoneModi, loosely translating to "Go Back Modi". The hashtag is also a reference to the popular punchline [[Narasimham (film)#Legacy|"Nee Po Mone Dinesha"]] from the film ''Narasimham''.<ref>{{cite news |author=Rajan |first=Nandagopal |date=13 May 2016 |title=#PoMoneModi: Angry Kerala responds to PM Modi's Somalia comparision |work=The Indian Express |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/pomonemodi-trends-across-india-as-kerala-twitterati-vent-ire-at-pm/}}</ref>

==== Tamil Nadu ====
On 12 April 2018, Modi visited Chennai to inaugurate a defence expo organised by the [[Defence Exhibition Organisation]]. The day Modi arrived in Chennai, mass protests erupted, some of which were spearheaded by the DMK president and current Tamil Nadu chief minister, [[M. K. Stalin]]. The protests were characterized by black insignia, a colour associated with the [[Dravidian parties|Dravidian ideology]] in the state.<ref>{{cite news |author=Natarajan |first=Anand |date=15 October 2012 |title=It's not all black and white in TN dress politics |work=[[India Today]] |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/its-not-all-black-and-white-in-tn-dress-politics-118749-2012-10-15}}</ref> Simultaneously, social media campaigns erupted making use of the hashtag #GoBackModi for the first time. The hashtag became the top worldwide trend on Twitter that day,<ref>{{cite news |author=Tabrez |first=Huda |date=12 April 2018 |title=#GoBackModi becomes top worldwide trend on social media |work=[[Gulf News]] |url=https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india/gobackmodi-becomes-top-worldwide-trend-on-social-media-1.2204391}}</ref> and has been embraced to demonstrate protests every time Modi visits Tamil Nadu, ever since.

==== Other States ====

Apart from being repeatedly embraced by the South Indian states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the movement has also seen support in [[Karnataka]],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/gobackmodi-trends-top-on-twitter-during-pms-visit/article30464162.ece |title=#GoBackModi trends top on Twitter during PM's visit |date=3 January 2020 |work=The Hindu}}</ref> [[Andhra Pradesh]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Teja |first=Charan |date=10 February 2019 |title=#GoBackModi trends on Twitter again, TDP protests in Andhra over PM visit |work=The News Minute |url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/gobackmodi-trends-twitter-again-tdp-protests-andhra-over-pm-visit-96494}}</ref> [[Punjab, India|Punjab]],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://thewire.in/rights/joint-platform-of-central-trade-unions-to-mark-january-31-as-day-of-betrayal |title=Joint Platform of Central Trade Unions to Mark January 31 as 'Day of Betrayal' |date=24 January 2022 |work=The Wire}}</ref> [[West Bengal]],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/1/11/go-back-modi-india-protesters-condemn-pms-visit-to-kolkata |title='Go back Modi': India protesters condemn PM's visit to Kolkata |date=11 January 2020 |work=Al Jazeera}}</ref> and also the [[Northeast India|Northeastern]] states of [[Arunachal Pradesh]], [[Assam]] and [[Tripura]] among others.<ref>{{cite news |author=Bansal |first=Priyanka |date=12 February 2019 |title='Go Back Modi' Protests Mark PM's Visits to Andhra & Northeast |work=The Quint |url=https://www.thequint.com/elections/social-dangal/go-back-modi-modi-destroys-andhra-hashtags-pm-modi-twitter-trends#read-more}}</ref>

=== Foreign ===

==== Bangladesh ====
{{main|2021 Bangladesh anti-Modi protests}}
[[Bangladesh]]'s golden jubilee celebration turned chaotic as protests erupted against Indian Prime Minister [[Narendra Modi]], who visited [[Dhaka]] on March 26 2021 as the chief guest. At least 10 people died and dozens were injured in anti-Modi demonstrations. The visit, marking [[Bangladesh]]'s 50th Independence Day, led the government to deploy border security forces nationwide and restrict Facebook and messaging app access to quell mobilization.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mahmud |first=Faisal |title=Why did Bangladesh witness anti-Modi protests? |url=https://www.trtworld.com/magazine/why-did-bangladesh-witness-anti-modi-protests-45426 |access-date=2024-09-11 |website=www.trtworld.com |language=en}}</ref>

Tensions had surfaced a week earlier with rallies in Dhaka opposing Modi's visit, criticizing him for the 2002 Gujarat pogrom and human rights issues in India. Protests turned violent on March 26 after Friday prayers in [[Dhaka]], [[Brahmanbaria]], and [[Chattogram]], resulting in fatalities and injuries. The relationship between [[Bangladesh]] and [[India]], historically close since Bangladesh's independence, has strained amid Modi's tenure due to his Hindu nationalist stance and controversial policies.

[[Sheikh Hasina]] faces challenges reconciling anti-Modi sentiment, amplified by issues like the National Register of Citizens and Citizenship Amendment Act, seen as discriminatory. Critics, including Dhaka University's Imtiaz Ahmed, deemed Modi's invitation for the golden jubilee inappropriate, citing conflicts over Teesta river water-sharing and border incidents.

Asif Shibgat Bhuiyan, a Bangladeshi blogger, noted protests stemmed from diverse political motivations: religious conservatives opposing Modi's perceived anti-Muslim stance and left-leaning parties rejecting Hindu nationalism's rise in Indian politics
.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-03-19 |title=Muslims, students protest Indian PM's visit to Bangladesh |url=https://apnews.com/article/dhaka-narendra-modi-india-bangladesh-dfd4e93079efc0a3b4bc5449d128d122 |access-date=2023-07-10 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref>

=== Reactions ===
The primary target of the movement, the BJP, has claimed that the hashtag is inorganic and has been propagated by users from Pakistan in the past.<ref>{{cite news |author=Sinha |first1=Pratik |last2=Chaudhuri |first2=Pooja |date=13 October 2019 |title=Fact check: Was a Pakistani conspiracy behind #GoBackModi trending as India Today, others claimed? |work=Scroll |url=https://scroll.in/article/940343/fact-check-was-a-pakistani-conspiracy-behind-gobackmodi-trending-as-india-today-others-claimed}}</ref> A BJP member also filed a case on Tamil actor [[Oviya]] for using the hashtag.<ref name="oviya-complaint"/>

==See also==
* [[Public image of Narendra Modi]]

==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Narendra Modi}}
[[Category:Hashtags]]
[[Category:Narendra Modi]]
[[Category:Indian political slogans]]
[[Category:2018 in Internet culture]]
[[Category:Internet memes introduced from India]]
[[Category:Internet memes introduced in 2016]]
[[Category:Internet memes introduced in 2018]]
[[Category:2016 establishments in India]]
[[Category:2018 establishments in India]]

GoBackModi - Revision history

ArleneBelmore12 at 02:00, 30 April 2026