5 people identified and interviewed over comments on Nepal floods, SIA's Air India investment: Police

Singapore police are probing online comments that may be related to the Nepal floods and Singapore Airlines' investment in Air India, according to a statement released on September 9. The police have identified five individuals through recent reports and have initiated interviews with them. In its statement, the police assured that they will persist in identifying those responsible for these online remarks.

They emphasized their zero-tolerance approach towards conduct that could offend racial sentiments or provoke hostility among different racial groups.

Senior Minister K Shanmugam had previously denounced racist and xenophobic comments found online, labeling them "shameful, nasty," and "totally unacceptable." He pointed out several examples, such as "No they are not our own," "I only see Indian faces here. Skip. Rescue cut," and "All ABNNs look the same, how to AI?" The term "ABNN" is a derogatory term for Indians.

Shanmugam also pointed out that despite more than a thousand people losing their lives and Singaporeans still being unaccounted for, racist comments continued to circulate online. He also mentioned "anti-Indian, racist ranting" linked to discussions about SIA's investment in Air India, which included remarks with references to snakes, curry, prata, and black magic.

The Ministry of Digital Development and Information plans to request social media platforms to take down comments that violate their guidelines. Shanmugam stated that the media informed him that several comments were removed due to their extreme nastiness. However, it remains unclear if all the remarks were made by Singaporeans. Police stated that investigations are ongoing and they cannot comment on individual cases.