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Singapore Police Question Five Over Racist Online Posts on Nepal Floods, Air India Investment

By PTI

Singapore police have interviewed five individuals, aged between 29 and 66, in connection with allegedly racist comments posted online regarding the Nepal-Tibet flash floods and Singapore Airlines' (SIA) investment in Air India. The development follows an announcement last week by Senior Minister K. Shanmugam that authorities were examining what he called "shameful" racist and xenophobic remarks circulating online about the two issues. According to Channel News Asia, police confirmed on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, that they had received reports and were investigating specific online comments related to both matters. Officials stated that the five individuals identified have been interviewed as part of the probe. "We will continue to investigate and identify those responsible for these online comments," police said, adding that they regard seriously any conduct capable of hurting racial sentiments or inciting hostility between racial groups. Police said they could not comment further on individual cases while investigations remain ongoing. Mr. Shanmugam, who also serves as Home Affairs Minister, had earlier cited several examples of offensive remarks made online about missing Singaporeans, including phrases 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?" He explained that "ABNN" is a derogatory term used against Indians. He noted that despite more than a thousand deaths and Singaporeans still unaccounted for in the disaster, such comments continued to appear online. Separately, news that Air India was seeking additional equity investment from shareholders, including SIA, triggered another wave of what Mr. Shanmugam described as "anti-Indian, racist ranting." SIA holds a 25.1% stake in Air India as part of its partnership with the Tata Group. Mr. Shanmugam said the Ministry of Digital Development and Information would request social media platforms to remove posts that violate community guidelines, adding that some platforms had already taken down comments due to their offensive nature. "I don't know if all the comments are all made by Singaporeans. But I will say this – the comments are shameful, nasty, totally unacceptable," he said. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong also addressed the issue, stating that Singapore must not allow prejudice against any community to become normalized. "We can and should have robust debates. But we should never use seemingly legitimate arguments as a cover to fuel prejudice against any community or hostility towards foreigners," Mr. Wong said.