Shame! Meesho takes down Lawrence Bishnoi merch following internet pushback

Controversy sells. And while that might be a coattail that capitalism wants to ride on endlessly, there are some instances where the line needs to be drawn. And the internet has made sure of that this time around. Popular e-commerce platform Meesho has been in the news once basic t-shirts with Lawrence Bishnoi’s face as the primary iconography on them, were discovered being stocked on their website. If it isn’t already blatantly obvious what the pressing issue seems to be, Bishnoi is a well-known gangster, currently in Gujarat’s Sabarmati jail for cross-border drug smuggling though his extended criminal charges range from extortion to murder — not to mention he is a key decision maker and the bona fide face of the Bishnoi gang. To morbidly refresh your memory, these are the same players who orchestrated the gunning of late singer Sidhu Moose Wala. More topical, are the slew of death threats actor Salman Khan has been regularly receiving over the alleged blackbuck killings from 1999.
From an unprovoked firing outside the actor’s Bandra residence in April to the multiple death threats which have put his security on high alert as he awaits the import of his bulletproof car as an extra measure — a situation accelerated by the murder of NCP leader Baba Siddique — the Salman-Bishnoi saga still has the Mumbai police on tenterhooks.
Coming back to the case at hand, the obvious question that stems from this then, is why and how was it even considered, let alone authorised, to have shirts with the imprisoned gangster’s face on them? Filmmaker Alishan Jafri was among the first to publicly express the distasteful move by the platform, calling it another shining example of “online radicalisation” rearing its ugly head on India’s impressionable minds. The X thread also called out Meesho for housing similarly templated shirts with deceased criminal Durlabh Kashyap’s face on them. The fact that the word, ‘gangster’ and ‘real hero’ stands splashed across the pieces, further drives the point home with regards to severely careless messaging. The internet for one, has made their displeasure with regards to situation known.
Comments expressing the same read: “Hello @Meesho_Official Don’t glamorize crime! Wearing Lawrence Bishnoi’s merchandise doesn’t make you cool, it promotes gang culture”, “#LawrenceBishnoi, a known criminal under #IndianLaw, has multiple cases against him, with several killings linked to his name. Meanwhile, #Meesho, a popular #ecommerce platform, is selling T-shirts with his branding, openly glorifying a gangster”, “Real shame” and “So, e-commerce sites like @Flipkart and @Meesho_Official are openly supporting the gangster and glorifying his killings! Shame!”.
In an official statement to Hindustan Times, Meesho has, at the very least, acknowledged the grave error in judgement. “We have taken immediate action to deactivate the products. Meesho remains committed to providing a safe and trusted shopping platform for all our users”, shared a spokesperson.
Following the recent turn of events, do you see yourself shopping from Meesho in the near future?