Friday
22nd Nov 2024
Dhivehi Edition
Former Member of Parliament for Hoarafushi Constituency Mohamed Ismail and another individual has been arrested.
Ismail was arrested under a court order near Star Cinema. Maldives Police Service (MPS) had previously requested Criminal Court to issue a court order to arrest him. However, Criminal Court Judge Hassan Saeed had refused to issue a warrant.
Wednesday’s warrant stated that Ismail was suspected to be a senior figure behind the “India Out” campaign and that his actions had impacted the bilateral relations between Maldives and other nations.
The other individual arrested was an opposition activist – Ali Naseem, commonly known as Thakaney. He had defected from ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) to the opposition Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM).
The India Out movement has been branded a threat to national security. It was criminalized under a Presidential decree in April.
The warrant cited the Presidential decree.