Suspended Deputy Youth Minister Mariyam Shiuna has apologized for mocking the Indian flag after including parts of the flag in an altered campaign poster of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).
In a post on X, Shiuna apologized to people who misunderstood or became upset due to the content of the post. She denied any intention to mock India and claimed to have used the design of the Indian flag "by mistake."
Despite apologizing over the Indian flag, Shiuna did not explain her reasons for using the BJP's logo in the post that drew criticism.
Shiuna shared the post with the mockery of the Indian flag at 11:37 pm on Saturday night. The photo on the post made on her X account changed the MDP's campaign slogan and included the logo of India's ruling party.
After the photo drew criticism, Shiuna deleted the post and removed "Deputy Minister" from the bio of her X account.
Shiuna's post drew stringent criticism from Indian newspapers and members of the public, many of whom called on the Maldivian government to fire her and cited her suspension over previous derogatory remarks against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Shiuna and two other deputy ministers at the Youth Ministry have been under suspension since January over the mockery of Modi. The incident strained relations between the countries and sparked a diplomatic row.
