Speaker of the Parliament Mohamed Nasheed says India played a vital role in ensuring that the Maldives was granted freedom from the British back in 1965,
MP for Kaashidhoo constituency Abdullah Jabir had today submitted an emergency motion to halt the opposition's anti-India rally planned for Friday. Speaking during the debate of the motion, MP for Naifaru constituency Ahmed Shiyam said that the Maldives could lose its freedom if Indian troops are allowed on Maldivian soil and that the opposition is working to prevent that.
In response to his comments, Speaker Nasheed said that India attained its freedom from the British in 1947 and that the Maldives had not been freed then.
Nasheed said that there should be a reason why two neighboring countries attained their independence that year and the Maldives could not. He clarified that the two countries were India and Pakistan.
He said that former statement Ibrahim Shihab had met Indian Prime Minister Nehru and consequently the Maldives was declared as an independent state in 1968.
He added that India played a key role in the development.
The Maldives attained independence from the British colonial government in 1965.
