Why photo of couple kissing on train in Sri Lanka has been slammed online

A popular travel couple has copped criticism online after they were accused of risking their lives to capture an Instagram photo.

Portuguese pair Raquel and Miguel have amassed over 200,000 followers as they travel the world sharing hundreds of photos of idyllic settings from their ongoing journey.

But one of the couple’s latest posts depicting them hanging from a moving train on a bridge in Sri Lanka has drawn attention for all the wrong reasons.

Hundreds have descended on the post to slam the pair for their actions in search of the “perfect” picture as Raquel dangles precariously over a steep drop.

“What is wrong with you people risking life and limb for an Instagram shot?! “ one outraged follower wrote.

“Even though the shot is nice this is just a stupid couple who put themselves in danger for likes and validation!” another said.

“So stupid!  This is why I don’t feel any empathy when “influencers” get killed for getting the “best” selfie,” one wrote.

Another image on their page shows Raquel hanging from a vehicle holding onto Miguel’s hand.

But Raquel hit back at her critics in the comments section saying the pair’s safety was never at risk.

“[Miguel] didn’t put me in danger, I’m pretty independent and I do what I feel comfortable with,” she wrote.

Other posts shared to their Instagram shows the pair posing in other precarious spots.

And it appears the online concerns are justified with research from India identifying a spike in deaths while taking selfies most likely to be shared across social media.

From 2011 to 2017, researchers identified 259 deaths while taking selfies.

Trains and other forms of transport were responsible for 51 of those deaths.

Source: Yahoo7 News