A controversial Washington Post report alleging India’s involvement in a plot to impeach Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu has drawn sharp reactions, with former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed and Indian experts categorically rejecting the claims as baseless. Nasheed defended India, asserting that it has always supported Maldives’ democracy and would never engage in such a scheme. “India would never back such a move, as they always support Maldives’ democracy.
India has never dictated terms to us, either,” Nasheed tweeted, rejecting the report and dismissing any notion of a serious plot against Muizzu. The Washington Post report, based on a document titled “Democratic Renewal Initiative,” claimed that Maldivian opposition leaders proposed bribing 40 parliament members, including those from Muizzu’s own party, to secure votes for his impeachment.
The alleged conspiracy, detailed in an internal document titled Democratic Renewal Initiative, extended to paying off senior army and police officials and enlisting three criminal gangs to ensure Muizzu’s removal. According to The Washington Post, Maldivian opposition politicians crafted a plan to unseat President Mohamed Muizzu by bribing 40 members of parliament, including some from his own People’s National Congress (PNC). The report also claimed that $6 million (87 million Maldivian rufiyaa) was sought to fund the plan, allegedly from Bharat. Surveillance records, purportedly provided by a source close to Muizzu, implicated two Bharat’s intermediaries and a senior Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) officer in the alleged scheme.
The intermediaries were identified as Shirish Thorat, a former Bharat’s police officer turned private military contractor, and Savio Rodrigues, a Goa-based publisher with past affiliations to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The report alleged that Thorat and Rodrigues had held covert discussions in Washington with a senior RAW official about the plot. Despite months of alleged planning, the plot reportedly fell apart due to a lack of parliamentary support.
The Washington Post admitted that it remains unclear how seriously Bharat considered the plan or whether it had official sanction from New Delhi. Former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed, a prominent opposition leader, dismissed the allegations outright. In a tweet, he stated: “I read with interest today’s @washingtonpost article. I was unaware of any serious plot against the President; though some people always live in conspiracy. Bharat would never back such a move, as they always support Maldives’ democracy.
India has never dictated terms to us, either.” Nasheed’s firm denial states his trust in Bharat as a democratic ally, rejecting any notion of its involvement in undermining Maldives’ sovereignty.
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