Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that he will be handing over his social media accounts to women who inspire on Sunday, March 8, and urged people to share stories of such women with him. The tweet put an end to widespread speculation after the prime minister tweeted on Monday night that he was considering giving up his social media accounts.
"This Women's Day, I will give away my social media accounts to women whose life & work inspire us. This will help them ignite motivation in millions. Are you such a woman or do you know such inspiring women? Share such stories using #SheInspiresUs," he tweeted.
On Monday night, Prime Minister Modi set social media abuzz after stating that he was thinking of quitting his social media accounts.
"This Sunday, thinking of giving up my social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & YouTube. Will keep you all posted."
Within an hour, the tweet had been retweeted over 26,000 times, and had reached 49,000 retweets by Tuesday afternoon.
Several people speculated that the tweet was a reaction to misinformation spread on social media, especially in regards to the communal riots in Delhi, and that the PM was going to give up his Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube accounts as he was upset over the same. Quite soon, ‘No sir’ started trending on Twitter, with people requesting Modi not to leave the social media platforms.
Now, with the Prime Minister announcing that he will just be handing over his social media to women for the day, some, including the Congress Party, have called the move a 'gimmick.'
PM is master in theatrics,latest being his SM quitting tweet & announcing a SheInspires campaign
— Karnataka Congress (@INCKarnataka) March 3, 2020
He closed doors of parliament for riot affected woman of Delhi
A woman MP is manhandled inside parliament
But @narendramodi announces campaign for woman inspiration?
its a calamity https://t.co/OPBeQIeBTC
Who called them BJP and not gimmicky kamal? https://t.co/wRpE7Q5ZVo
— Thejaswi Udupa (@udupendra) March 3, 2020
Others gave suggestions on who should take over the Prime Minister’s social media handles for Women’s Day.
Dear @narendramodi Ji, My suggestion would be that let Saalumarada Thimmakka ji take over your account for a day. Let her explain to the country that why plantation is important & how conveniently it could be done with little efforts which will count for sure. #SheInspiresUs https://t.co/53gGLmULYv pic.twitter.com/bUwnKK3m4C
— Rahul Mahajan (@TheRahulMahajan) March 3, 2020
#SheInspiresUs . Give Aysha your social media handles https://t.co/BzqSTVw25M pic.twitter.com/OK0w19DwzL
— پربھا (@deepsealioness) March 3, 2020
Pls get in touch with @fayedsouza I think she has a lot of things to say that you cannot. Plus #SheInspiresUs https://t.co/HmDU5qRJet
— Sahil Shah (@SahilBulla) March 3, 2020
Yes, Modiji I know 100s of such inspiring women from Shaheen Bagh, and Chand Bagh, who are fearless and epitome of unwavering spirit. Please share their stories with nation.#Sheinspiresus https://t.co/I8DPsI01tO
— Vikas Bhadauria (@Vikas5fi) March 3, 2020
I would recommend @RanaAyyub or @ReallySwara or @Shehla_Rashid. It would be fun watching tweets from this handle https://t.co/SEqUBtBW05
— Canopus (@HeyItsCanopus) March 3, 2020
But some criticised the move.
This Women’s Day if you could tell your army of monkeys to stop issuing rape threats on twitter that would be great!! Jai Hind https://t.co/R5md77CH2u
— Mukta J (@joshi_mukta) March 3, 2020
Sudha Bharadwaj. You put her in jail.
— Radhika Radhakrishnan (@so_radhikal) March 3, 2020
Gauri Lankesh. Your goons killed her.
This women's day, nobody gives a fuck what you do about your social media accounts. Can you give us our women back? https://t.co/IzSRy2ByOd