Breaking: India summons South Korean envoy, lodges strong protest over Hyundai's Kashmir fiasco

Lodging a strong protest over the lies and propaganda being spread by Hyundai Pakistan on Kashmir, India strongly conveyed that “Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India.”

New Delhi: India on Tuesday summoned South Korean Ambassador Chang Jae-bok and lodged a strong protest over the controversial social media posts by Hyundai Pakistan on the so-called Kashmir Solidarity Day.

Arindam Bagchi, the spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), said it was highlighted to the envoy that the matter concerned India's territorial integrity on which there could be "no compromise".

Bagchi said immediately after the social media post on Sunday, the Indian Ambassador in Seoul contacted the Hyundai headquarters and sought an explanation. The Indian mission in Seoul also took up the issue with the South Korean government and conveyed a tough message, he added.

He said the ambassador of South Korea was summoned by the Ministry of External Affairs on Monday. South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong expressed regret over the issue during a telephonic conversation with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar, according to Bagchi.

"The ambassador of the Republic of Korea was summoned by the Ministry of External Affairs on February 7. The strong displeasure of the government on the unacceptable social media post by Hyundai Pakistan was conveyed to him," Bagchi said.

"It was highlighted that this matter concerned India's territorial integrity on which there could be no compromise. We expected the company to take appropriate action to properly address these issues," he said.

South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong called Jaishankar this morning and the issue figured in the conversation.

A controversial tweet from Hyundai Pakistan’s Official Twitter handle on Sunday provoked angry reactions from Indian users on Twitter as they interpreted the post as supporting separatists and terrorists.

After the backlash on social media, Hyundai Motor India on Sunday issued a statement saying that it stands strong on its ethos of respecting nationalism. 

However, the statement didn't go well with the Indian social media users who demanded an unconditional apology from the South Korean auto giant. Both Hyundai and Kia are facing a backlash on social media and #BoycottHyundai began trending. 

Hyundai Global later issued another statement saying they 'deeply regret the inconvenience caused' and action has been taken against the dealer partner. As per the company, the tweet has been deleted as it goes against the company's policy to comment on religious and political issues. 

Hyundai Motor India is the second-largest carmaker in the country after Maruti Suzuki India. It currently sells 12 models including Creta and Venue in the domestic market. In December last year, the automaker announced plans to invest around Rs 4,000 crore to drive in around six electric vehicles in India by 2028.