‘India should have reacted strongly, must seek probe’

A day after he met the special Indian envoy sent by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, deposed Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed told The Sunday Express that New Delhi should demand an independent inquiry into the “coup” and said he was disappointed that India did not make the correct judgement on the matter.
“There is a strong need for an inquiry into the circumstances that led to the coup. I think India should make this point,” Nasheed said even as his successor announced that he would order an independent probe.
Nasheed, who said on Friday that he “understood” New Delhi’s political compulsions and was not disappointed with its reaction, changed his position on Saturday after meeting special envoy M Ganapati. He was more critical of India’s stand, but refrained from taking a very strong position.
“(We believed) that India would have had a very proper understanding of the issue as they have all information as well as intelligence (inputs) to make the right judgement. It is disappointing when you find it is not so,” Nasheed said.
The former president has protested over what he terms as a bloodless coup that “illegally” removed him from office. He has demanded an international scrutiny into the circumstances that led to his ouster on Tuesday.
Nasheed, who was close to the Indian leadership, said his party expected a “more robust, more strong” reaction by India, adding that New Delhi should have made its voice heard during the crisis. He said that there is still scope for India to change its stance of welcoming and supporting the new government under President Mohamed Waheed. 
“In the first flash (of reaction) there was a bit of a misunderstanding. US had the same stand but they backtracked a bit. India should also not hesitate to do this. It has not made the best start but changes can be made,” Nasheed said.
While Nasheed had refrained from commenting on India’s role so far, his change of stance is being seen as a sign that New Delhi has made its position clear that it believes in the legitimacy of the present government.
New Delhi is of the opinion that the change of power was conducted in a politically conducive manner and within the framework of the Maldivian government. Nasheed, however, said on Saturday that his removal took place almost at gunpoint and that his life was threatened before he handed in his resignation.
Sources said India, however, has made its position clear that the change in leadership is part of the political process and was, in fact, inevitable as Nasheed’s government had lost power in Parliament. The Indian view has been that Nasheed’s Maldivian Democratic Party was on its way out and a legitimate opposition group, led by Waheed, came to power.