The newly formed The Democrats, which has been in political talks with the Progressive Party of Maldives-People's National Congress (PPM-PNC) coalition, has urged to stop the 'India Out' campaign.
The Democrats is a party formed by supporters of former President Mohamed Nasheed who has been critical of the 'India Out' campaign launched by the opposition coalition.
The Democrats and the opposition coalition recently agreed to work together and have been holding regular meetings.
The PPM-PNC coalition supporters, wearing masks depicting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demonstrated in Male' during Eid. But the demonstration was condemned by senior members of The Democrats.
At a press conference Sunday, a journalist questioned whether The Democrats would compromise on the 'India Out' campaign as they work with the opposition against the government of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
The Democrats founder Hassan Latheef responded that they cannot support any political activities against friendly countries.
“It will be difficult for us to even work with that political party, as you mention, 'India Out' is a movement run by PPM. We want to work with PPM, so we ask them to stop it,” Hassan said.
Despite agreeing to work together, the PPM-PNC coalition and The Democrats said today that the parties will contest separately in the first round of the presidential election.
The PPM-PNC's presidential candidate is former president Abdulla Yameen, who is serving an 11-year prison sentence. Yameen is appealing his jail sentence in the High Court and will not be able to contest if the sentence is not overturned.
Yameen had earlier visited several islands while wearing a T-shirt with the 'India Out' slogan. In an interview with Adhadhu at the time, Yameen said that the campaign was more important to him than the presidential election.
The 'India Out' campaign is a movement by the opposition calling for the withdrawal of Indian troops stationed in Maldives. The opposition says the defense agreements with India affect the country's independence.
The opposition also accuses India of planning to establish military bases in the Maldives. However, the governments of Maldives and India deny the allegations.
According to senior government officials, the government’s policy of seeking Indian military assistance aims to curb drug and weapon smuggling into the country and enhance military capabilities to counter terrorism activities.
