Indian MEA team reaches Male; Nasheed unlikely to appear in court

Male: A high-level team of officials from Ministry of External Affairs arrived here on Wednesday to "assist" Indian High Commission to resolve the situation arising out of former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed taking refuge in the Indian Mission for the eight day in a row.

The team, which is headed by Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Joint Secretary in the MEA and includes officials of legal background, arrived here to meet various "stakeholders" including Maldives Foreign Minister Abdul Samad Abdulla later

today, official sources told reporters.

An official of Nasheed\'s MDP has said that Nasheed will not leave the Indian embassy to appear before the court.

"They came in early morning and are holding series of meetings," a source said. Nasheed has been in the Indian Mission since February 13 to evade arrest after he failed to appear in court on charges of detaining Chief Criminal Judge Abdulla Mohamed while he was president, which his party considers politically motivated and designed to disqualify him from politics.

A Maldivian court issued a fresh arrest warrant against Nasheed and directed the police to produce him before it at 4 pm on Wednesday. Immediately after the issuance of warrant, the Maldivian Foreign Ministry conveyed court order against Nasheed to the Indian High Commission.

An unnamed official of Nasheed's MDP told Haveeru daily that former President Nasheed will not leave the Indian High Commission to appear before the court.

External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Tueday said in New Delhi that India would be the "happiest" if the situation is solved. "There is unusual stress caused by local conditions. We just wish them the best... I would certainly endorse any method and any means by which the present situation can be resolved," he said.

The Minister added, "I think it is actually not a matter that gives any sense of satisfaction and if it gets resolved,

we will be the happiest".

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