India slams WaPo report on alleged plot against neighbor
India’s Ministry of External Affairs has dismissed a report by the Washington Post this week that alleged New Delhi’s involvement in a plot to oust Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu. The ministry’s spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, on Friday questioned the credibility of the US outlet’s reporting when asked to comment on two separate articles it published.
One of the articles revealed the details of an alleged plot to impeach Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu, while the other suggested that Indian intelligence agents were carrying out plans to eliminate militants in Pakistan whom India links to cross-border terrorism.
“Both the newspaper and the reporter in question appear to nurse a compulsive hostility towards India. You can see a pattern in their activities. I leave you to judge their credibility. As far as we are concerned, they have none,” Jaiswal said.
In its report on the Maldives, the US newspaper, citing a document titled Democratic Renewal Initiative, claimed that politicians from the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) allegedly sought $6 million from New Delhi to fund a plot to impeach Muizzu. However, the plan reportedly did not materialize.
Relations between India and the Maldives have become tense after Muizzu took office in November 2023. Muizzu’s administration, which is seen as pro-China in New Delhi, sought the withdrawal of Indian military personnel stationed in the Maldives. While the troops were eventually replaced with civilian personnel from India to service several defense platforms donated by New Delhi, both nations later made efforts to repair ties.
In October 2024, Muizzu visited India, his first bilateral trip since assuming office. Following a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, the two leaders expressed a commitment to strengthening their relationship and signed a range of bilateral agreements, including an outline for an economic and maritime security partnership.
India extended financial assistance, including a $400 million agreement and a 30-billion-rupee currency swap, to support the Maldives. India also announced a series of infrastructure and other economic initiatives in the island nation.
