After a brief but seemingly interminable 11-day stay at the Indian High Commission in Male, former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed on Saturday left the mission premises even as India hoped that he would resume his “social and political life”.
Apparently, the Indian establishment was referring to a deal that he would not be put behind the bars or stopped from contesting the Presidential poll in September.
Nasheed, who was flanked by Indian High Commissioner D M Mulay and Ministry of External Affairs(MEA)Joint Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, emerged from the High Commission building at around 4.15 pm IST.
The rather tame end to the standoff came barely 24 hours after India had reported “forward movement” in its discussions with the various stakeholders in the crisis. While asserting that Nasheed had walked in and out of the Indian mission “on his own volition,” New Delhi issued a statement hoping “with this development the former President will again resume his social and political life”.
For the last couple of days, the Indian delegation led by Shringla had been meeting leaders of all the political parties on the Indian Ocean archipelago as well as the Maldivian government functionaries to resolve the situation, which had dragged New Delhi into the highly polarised politics of Male.