New Delhi [India]: Maldives’ High Commissioner to India has clarified why India doesnot figure in the list of the countries where Maldives President Abdulla Yameen sent his ‘special envoys’.
In a statement, Ahmed Mohamed said, “The first stop of special envoy of the President was India. Foreign Minister of Maldives Dr. Mohamed Asim, the designated Special envoy of the President, was scheduled to be in India on February 8, but the visit was cancelled on the request of the Government of India.”
“The Government of the Maldives was informed that the said dates were not suitable for India’s leadership,” it added.
This statement came after the reports that said President Yameen, amidst the political tension in the country, sent his “special envoys” to “friendly countries” China, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, but not to India, apparently in an attempt to discuss the ongoing emergency in his country.
Reacting to the recent development, sources in the Government here said that due protocol was not followed as the Indian government was not informed of the purpose of sending the envoy. Moreover, Asim’s counterpart External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is on a visit to Saudi Arabia, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a three-nation tour from tomorrow.
“Also we have not seen any real action on the concerns stated by the international community and India. Democratic institutions and the Judiciary continue to be undermined and concerns ignored, these issues need to be properly addressed,” sources said.
Maldives President sent his economic development minister, Mohamed Saeed, to China, the foreign minister, Mohamed Asim, to Pakistan and farming and fisheries minister Mohamed Shainee to Saudi Arabia.
“Members of the cabinet, on the direction of President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom, will visit friendly nations of the Maldives and provide updates on the current situation,” an official statement said.
On Monday, former President of Maldives Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Chief Justice Saeed, Supreme Court Justice Ali Hameed and Judicial administrator Hassan Saeed were arrested by the security forces after Yameen declared a state of emergency in the country.
The arrests indicated that the crackdown on the opposition intensified. The country’s National Defence Force also stormed inside the Supreme Court (SC) premises in Male on Tuesday.
The Maldivian capital remained tense as opposition leaders across were being rounded up and placed under detention as Yameen, who has been refusing to obey SC’s orders directing him to release nine prominent leaders from prison, has given sweeping powers to security forces.
Last week, the Maldivian Supreme Court acquitted former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed, former Maldivian Vice President Ahmed Adeeb and ordered the reinstatement of the 12 other parliamentary members. (ANI)