It has been a busy week for Twitter users. New trends and counter-trends have sprung up with every passing day, and a large part of the social media platform now seems to be locked in a heated debate with each other over the ongoing farmers' protest.
The latest entrant to this list is the hashtag "IStandWithSachin", with a section of the social media platform lending support to former cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, even as others rail against him for his "pro-government stand". For the uninitiated, the ace cricketer had faced flak for his recent remarks, criticising "external forces" for attempting to participate in India's internal affairs.
What began with a tweet by international pop star and businesswoman, Rihanna, soon became an avalanche of support for the farmers' protest as a slew of international celebrities called out the Indian government. This in turn prompted the Ministry of External Affairs to release a statement censuring such personalities for giving in to "the temptation of sensationalist social media hashtags and comments". The MEA urged people to ascertain the facts and better understand the issues at hand before commenting.
Soon after this, a large number of Indian celebrities began tweeting in favour of an amicable dispute resolution, and standing against "propaganda". Many of them also shared the MEA statement.
The fact that Tendulkar was on this list, was enough to set netizens off. Angry Youth Congress workers in Kerala poured ink over a cutout of Tendulkar, even as many thought it was now necessary to apologise to Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova for trolling her six years ago.
A day later, the tide has turned, and it is now the chance for those supporting Tendulkar to make their voices heard. Thus, Saturday morning dawned with #IStandWithSachin trending on Twitter as supporters of the Master Blaster praised his efforts.
Take a look at some of the posts:
