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‘Return our £2.3 bn’: UK journalist faces backlash for comments on Chandrayaan-3 mission

Following India’s successful Chandrayaan-3 mission, a UK journalist’s call to ‘return £2.3 bn’ has sparked outrage online.

Published on: Aug 24, 2023, 19:39:34 IST
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UK news presenter Patrick Christys congratulated India after it engraved its name in the annals of history through the Chandrayaan-3 mission’s success. However, his subsequent comments during the news broadcast didn’t go down well with Indians, with many condemning his remarks.

UK news presenter Patrick Christys during his show on the historic Chandrayaan-3 mission. (X/@PatrickChristys)
UK news presenter Patrick Christys during his show on the historic Chandrayaan-3 mission. (X/@PatrickChristys)

Also Read| ‘Already chand par reh rahe hain’: Man from Pakistan on India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission

During his show, Christys says, “I would like to congratulate India for landing on the dark side of the moon. I would also like to invite India to return the 2.3 billion pounds of aid money that we sent them between 2016 and 2021. We are also set to give the 57 million pounds next year. But I think the British taxpayer should keep a hold of that. We should not be giving money to countries with a space program as a rule.”

“I appear to have enraged Indian Twitter,” he wrote while sharing a video from his bulletin on X (formerly Twitter).

Watch the entire video below:

The video, since being shared on August 24, has accumulated over nine lakh views, and the view count continues to rise steadily. The journalist’s insensitive remark has triggered an uproar online.

Here’s how people reacted to this video:

“We understand your pain. Even after looting India’s 45T£ you are not able to achieve what India did,” posted an individual.

“So when was the last time the UK landed anything on the moon? Brexit Man is jealous!” enquired a third.

A fourth shared, “How jealous could one be?”

“Return the kohinoor first,” remarked a fifth.

  • Arfa Javaid
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Arfa Javaid

    Arfa Javaid is a journalist working with the Hindustan Times' Delhi team. She covers trending topics, human interest stories, and viral content online.

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