Kerala Tourism invites Karnataka MLAs to unwind

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: When Karnataka hit the national headlines on Tuesday with the assembly elections verdict, its neighbour Kerala went viral on twitter through an official tweet by the state tourism department inviting the MLAs to unwind in ‘god’s own country’ after the ‘rough and tumble of the verdict’.

Rising to the occasion, ‘in order to make its twitter handle active in no time’ (as revealed by sources in the department), the tweet by @KeralaTourism said: “After the rough and tumble of the #KarnatakaVerdict, we invite all the MLAs to unwind at the safe & beautiful resorts of God’s Own Country.” Tweeted at 5.48 pm, it invited around 3000 retweets and more than 5000 likes in half an hour.





The tweet is part of the department’s tourism promotion campaign #ComeOutAndPlay meant for families, couples and kids. “It’s for all, and then why not for the MLAs, after all the hustle and bustle of elections? Kerala is a great option for unwinding,” said an official. Of course, the tweet apparently has the official endorsement as Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran shared the tweet on his Facebook page in no time.

However, the tweet became viral as followers began interpreting it as a move foreseeing heralding of MLAs to a safe location and keeping them there in view of possible horse trade. When subtle comments hinted at possibility of MLAs being huddled up in resorts outside Karnataka, some went in praise for the Kerala Tourism’s creativity.

“That’s what you call tourism promotion,” said one, while another said: “Can’t be a better time to do it!! Kudos to your creativity,” Somebody inquired whether there would be any discount for voters, while another warned resorts on possible income tax raids after MLAs’ visit. “The best tweet by far on election verdict,” said another comment.

It was sometimes back that another tweet by @Kerala Tourism went viral when it saluted Taj Mahal, amidst an ongoing controversy over the monument’s ‘greatness’. The official reaction was that the tweet was inspired after seeing the belittling remarks and statements on Taj Mahal.