Nandani villagers completely boycotting Reliance Jio after the relocation of Mahadevi, their beloved temple elephant, to Gujarat

Villagers in Nandani (Kolhapur district) began actively boycotting Reliance Jio after the relocation of Mahadevi, their beloved temple elephant to Gujarat in the month of July. 

Some messages on social media stating that this movement has been extended to 743 villages in Karnataka state, but it’s not yet clear whether this movement extends to the villages of Karnataka.  

Nandani villagers completely boycotting Reliance Jio after the relocation of Mahadevi, their beloved temple elephant, to Gujarat. This triggered strong emotional protests. The residents reportedly started porting their Jio SIM cards to Airtel, with some villagers smashing SIMs in protest.  

Local coverage indicates that over 10,000 residents began switching away from Jio, describing it as a deeply personal and emotional backlash—not just a political gesture.  

The statement ‘7,000 people changed their Jio SIM to Airtel in one day’ may be plausible in a localized area, but no credible source has confirmed that exact figure for yesterday in Maharashtra or Karnataka. It's possible that such porting happened, but the specific number and scale remain uncharted in media reports.

Nationwide, hashtags like #BoycottJio surged across social media after telcos, including Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea, raised tariff plans starting July 2024 sparking dissatisfaction among users migrating to BSNL or other competitors.  

Many users across India have complained about service quality such as frequent call drops, slow or unreliable 5G and 4G connectivity, and hidden charges. These complaints have fueled social media movements and porting trends to alternate providers.