Mohamed Nasheed, 45, the first democratically elected president of the Maldives who was ousted in a coup in the early hours of February 7, has been in Delhi for the last few days. He is lobbying the Indian government for support to hold elections in the Maldives by the end of 2012, instead of 2013 when elections are due anyway. He tells Jyoti Malhotra that India should take a leadership role in the Indian Ocean
Maldives' former president said he DIDN'T authorise any arrest in a criminal court in Male
The Maldives government on Tuesday defended the arrest of former president Mohamed Nasheed.
Abdulla Yameen, half-brother of former autocratic ruler Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, on Saturday clinched an unexpected victory in the presidential run-off elections by defeating former President Mohamed Nasheed, who had led in two recent aborted polls.
Former President Mohammed Nasheed emerged as a clear leader on Sunday in the first round of Maldives presidential election, receiving 45 per cent votes, but fell short of an outright majority, resulting in a run-off between the top two candidates scheduled for later in September.
The Maldives government has no intention of removing the doctors from India at Senahiya military hospital .
George Joseph
Condolences have poured in from across the globe, including from the United States, Canada and Sri Lanka following the demise of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
China's stand is that relevant parties should find a solution internally.
Nasreen, who served as the director of the Indian Cultural Centre at the high commission of India in Male, Republic of Maldives, from 2019 to 2023, shared insights into the growing influence of China and Pakistan in countering India's soft power.
A round-up of the violence and political wrangling that now threatens the democratic framework of Maldives
Fresh violence erupted in Maldives including inside the parliament that was scheduled to open on Thursday with supporters of former president Mohammed Nasheed attacking the police and preventing President Mohammed Waheed Hassan from making his opening address.
An uneasy calm prevailed on Saturday on the streets of Maldivian capital Male following days of protests and clashes in the wake of the resignation of the country's first democratically-elected President Mohamed Nasheed. Shops and businesses opened in the city on Saturday morning after remaining closed during the protests, which erupted four days ago. Areas around the Maldives National Defence Force headquarters as well as the police headquarters witnessed normal activity.
Angry over the disruption of parliament by lawmakers of Mohamed Nasheed's party, Maldives' second largest political bloc DRP has withdrawn from the all-party talks, dealing a blow to efforts to reconcile the country's fractured political atmosphere.
India on Saturday voiced "deep concern" over the developments in the Maldives, a day after former president Mohamed Nasheed was sentenced to 13-year imprisonment by a criminal court of that country under anti-terror laws.
Angry lawmakers of former President Mohammed Nasheed's party on Thursday prevented the new President from delivering the opening address in Parliament even as protesters hit the streets clashing with police, deepening the political crisis.
Nasheed, whose Maldivian Democratic Party functions from Colombo, appealed for India's help.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposed visit to Maldives on March 15 is under shadow because of troubled situation in the island nation after the arrest of former President Mohamed Nasheed earlier this week.
A day after the Maldivian high court said it will look into the legitimacy of lower court bench trying former President Mohamed Nasheed, Hulhumale Magistrate Court on Tuesday suspended all trials pertaining to the arrest and subsequent detention of chief criminal judge.
Ahead of the first visit by President Mohamed Waheed, Maldives on Friday hoped that India will respect its sovereignty and will not play a role in the internal politics of the country.
In unusual comments at the SAARC forum, Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed on Wednesday talked about strained relations between India and Pakistan, saying that he hoped that tomorrow's meeting between the two countries' Prime Ministers will lead to resolution of their differences.
Ousted Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed has said he will be approaching the country's Supreme Court for justice following a coup, which he claims was engineered by then Vice President Dr Mohammed Waheed Hassan.
In a statement on Sunday, the Maldivian foreign ministry said they were aware of the "derogatory remarks on social media platforms against foreign leaders and high-ranking individuals".
Maldivian President Mohammed Waheed on Wednesday said that all the three candidates for the country's controversy-ridden presidential election have reached a consensus on holding the poll on November 9.
India on Friday rejected Maldivian charge that it was undermining its democratic institutions, saying it has no intention to interfere in its internal matters even as former President Mohamed Nasheed remained holed up in Indian mission in Male for the third day in a row amid efforts to resolve the situation.
In a significant decision, which may escalate the political turmoil in Maldives, the country's supreme court on Tuesday declared as null and void the first round of presidential polls in which former president Mohammed Nasheed emerged as the winner.
Nasheed's MDP is currently the largest political party in Maldives, but in the presidential elections it will have to find some allies to take his support to more than 50 per cent since the election is based on the run-off system, says Shubha Singh
With no signs of resolution to the situation arising out of former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed taking refuge in the Indian mission for the sixth day, India and Maldives on Monday engaged in a war of words with the former denying that its high commission was being used for holding political meetings to incite violence.
Nearly two months after he was ousted as Maldives' president, Mohamed Nasheed has said he will visit India next month to seek support for his efforts to hold early elections and restore a democratically-elected government in his country. 44-year-old Nasheed, who became Maldives' first democratically-elected president following multi-party polls in October 2008, had resigned on February 7 in what he claims was a coup.
The Indian government appears to have been caught napping in the Maldives on two counts, says security expert B Raman.
Thirteen people accompanied Rajapaksa to the Maldives. They arrived in an AN32 aircraft, according to TV news channels.
Former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed who is in New Delhi for the last five days trying to drum up support for his demand for establishing a popular government in Male, met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday and discussed the political situation in the Maldives and its future.
Two months after he quit as President of Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed on Thursday said India had "bungled" by not recognising the changeover as a "coup" and wants it to use "coercive" means against the new government to ensure fresh elections within this year.
Maldives' ousted President Mohammed Nasheed's MDP party has said that it was grateful to India for its "timely intervention" to help resolve the political impasse in the nation, a view shared by the new regime as well. "It has been a positive movement, a forward movement. India's role was very much important in ensuring that the political and democratic process is on," said Ibrahim Hussein Zaki, a senior MDP leader and close aide of Nasheed.
As the crisis in Maldives deepened, India on Friday sent its special envoy to Male to assess the situation in the island where former President Mohamed Nasheed was ousted in a coup. M Ganapathi, secretary (west) in the external affairs ministry left for Male with a brief to assess the situation in the Indian Ocean atoll, which has plunged into a crisis after the ouster of Nasheed. "I have sent an envoy to Maldives to assess the situation," Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said.
Describing climate change as one of the most serious security challenges the world is going to face, Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed, on Friday called for urgent United Nations reforms and making India and Brazil as permanent members of the Security Council.
Maldives' new regime has appointed a commission to probe allegations of coup against it following President Mohammed Nasheed's ouster, Male's envoy said on Wednesday, while accusing the toppled leader's Maldivian Democratic Party of reneging on an India-brokered deal to resolve the political impasse.
The Maldivian Democratic Party has claimed that Mohammad Nasheed was forced to resign as president by the military, which threatened a bloodbath in the capital if he did not step down. B Raman reports
The realist school of thought currently employed by Delhi, that friendships don't matter as long as national interest is taken care of, is all very well to pursue, except in this case Nasheed exemplified both friendship and national interest. After its errors of judgement on the Maldives, India's next opportunity will come only when elections are held.
A coup has reportedly been launched in The Maldives by the opposition and rogue elements of the police. According to reports, opposition demonstrators have taken over the state broadcaster. There are also unconfirmed reports of the coup having the army's support.President Mohammed Nasheed has reportedly resigned and he may be replaced by Vice-President Mohammed Waheed Hassan. Television channels are reporting that a flash election can be expected.
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