- By Abhishek Sheoran
- Sun, 21 Apr 2024 07:53 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
The Maldives is set to vote today in a parliamentary election that is expected to examine President Mohamed Muizzu's anti-India stance and shifting alignment towards China. The island nation became a geopolitical hotspot, besides being the most expensive holiday destination in South Asia. Muizzu has been working closely with China since a diplomatic tussle erupted between India and Maldives. This month, President Muizzu granted significant infrastructure contracts to Chinese state-owned firms.
Simultaneously, his administration is progressing with plans to repatriate a contingent of 89 Indian troops responsible for operating reconnaissance aircraft, which New Delhi originally gifted for patrolling the extensive maritime borders of the archipelago.
“Geopolitics is very much in the background as parties campaign for votes in Sunday's election. He came to power on a promise to send back Indian troops and he is working on it. The parliament has not been cooperating with him since he came to power,” news agency AFP quoted a senior aide of Muizzu as saying.
India-Maldives conflict:
A massive row erupted after several politicians in the Maldives mocked PM Modi’s Lakshadweep visit as netizens saw the Indian island as a potential tourist destination which could be developed as a substitute for Maldives. They used derogatory and racist comments against India and PM Modi, which drew massive ire with Indians vowing to boycott travel to Maldives. Netizens fervidly promoted trends including #exploreindianislands and #BoycottMaldives.
Maldives' former president Mohamed Nasheed rebuked the leaders who commented against PM Modi and asked the government to issue clarification. Nasheed called the remarks “appalling" and asked President Mohamed Muizzu's government to distance itself from these comments. However, the contention escalated and a massive reduction in the number of Indian tourists was witnessed in Maldives.