On the face of it, Maldives President Dr Mohamed Waheed's visit to India last week was to thank India, which along with the United States, were the only two countries that had representatives on the ground in Maldives during the political turmoil in February this year.

But at another level, Dr Waheed's first overseas visit after he took over as President was also meant to set the global record straight about what transpired in the country in February which saw political turmoil, revolt by the police, street protests and the eventual change of Government.

POLITICAL CURRENTS

Dr Waheed and his delegation were at pains to tell Indian journalists that former President Mohamed Nasheed was not removed in a coup. Conceding that street protests did take place in Male, the emphasis of the delegation was on highlighting the fact that not a single school was shut and not one foreigner was hurt during the political turmoil. Further, the international airport in the country continued to function normally right through the protests.

Dr Waheed's visit came close on the heels of former President Mohamed Nasheed's visit to New Delhi, during which the ousted president was as vociferous in maintaining that he had indeed been removed from office in a coup. He was also here to lobby with the Indian Government for support to hold elections in the Maldives by the end of 2012, instead of 2013 when they are actually due. Interestingly, Dr Waheed was President Nasheed's running mate in 2008 when he became the first democratically elected President of Maldives in 25 years.

The political crisis is seen as a fight between small elite groups trying to dominate the political system in the country.

Maldives is an Islamic state trying to come to terms with the seeds of liberal Western-style democracy. Though there is a view that these seeds were sown much before the Arab spring movement swept through the Gulf region, the cracks became more apparent during president Nasheed's stint.

The former President is accused of reversing the democratic process by using unfair and underhand means to ensure the survival of his government. He is also accused of buying out political parties by giving away islands free of cost, which in turn were sold to foreign companies wanting to set up hotels amidst the picture perfect beauty of the country. There is, however, another fear when it comes to Maldives — the resurgence of Islam. This is something that the former president has been emphasising repeatedly in media interviews. There have also been reports of Maldivian youth travelling to Pakistan for education and Islamic training.

INDIA'S IMAGE

But whatever the reasons for this most recent turmoil, India, which is the island nation's closest neighbour, has been looked at favourably by different regimes. That is why two presidents — one former and another current — have made it their business to come and air their points of view with the Indian leadership, and through the Indian media.

Of course, India has played a significant part in political developments in Maldives over decades. For instance, the Indian establishment threw its lot with Nasheed when he overthrew Maumoon Abdul Gayoom in 2008 as president. Earlier, Delhi had come to Gayoom's rescue in 1987 when pro-LTTE insurgents had mounted a coup against him. Perhaps this time, both Dr Waheed and Mr Nasheed were hoping to get the Indian Government to back them in the coming years.

India's equation with the Maldives is changing. As a big neighbour which is just a stone's throw away, India will obviously be wooed by the leadership in the island nation. Maldives could prove to be more strategic for India, primarily because of the developing business relations between the two countries.

Maldives is looking at India for large-scale investments. As far as Government investments are concerned, in December 2011 India had commitment and pipeline investments of about $900-950 million in Maldives. In addition, the Indian Government also extended assistance of $350-370 million to the Maldives Government.

And when it comes to the private sector, the largest chunk of Indian private investment is being made by the GMR Group, which is taking up the modernisation of the airport in Male. By 2014, GMR would have invested $400-450 million in the project. While the Sriram Group has set up the first PPP project in education in Maldives, the Tata Group is constructing 450 houses and the Suzlon and Bommidala groups have a presence in the renewable energy sector.

Besides, an Indian company is going to start a university there, apart from building a stadium, sports complex and wellness resort. On his recent visit President Waheed was also keen on getting Indian investments in the IT sector and possibly leasing out an island for setting up an IT park for which he held talks with top industrialists.

How India responds to the political overtures being made by the leaders from Maldives remains to be seen. It will have to take into consideration strategic business interests, as private Indian businesses are now in the picture.

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