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New Delhi: A split in the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) helped propel Mohamed Muizzu to power in 2023. As the opposition party prepares to choose its candidate for 2028, Abdulla Shahid, its former president and foreign minister who has entered the race for its presidential nomination, has urged the party to avoid a repeat of that division and warned that Muizzu could revive his anti-India narrative ahead of the election.

Shahid, who served as president of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, also told The Wire on a visit to the Indian capital that he expected MDP chairperson Mohamed Nasheed to be fair to all contenders in the primary, even though Nasheed has backed another candidate, former economic development minister Fayyaz Ismail.

“I believe that President Nasheed will be fair. I believe that he will be fair to all the candidates,” Shahid said.

Shahid resigned as MDP president in August to contest the primary, saying it would not be fair to seek the party’s nomination while holding its top post. 

The contest for the MDP’s presidential nomination has intensified with former party chairperson Fayyaz Ismail, former vice-president Faisal Naseem, Shahid and South Hulhumalé MP Ahmed Shamheed announcing their candidacies. Former president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih is also reportedly considering a bid. Nasheed has publicly backed Ismail, while Naseem has claimed to have the support of Solih.

Shahid’s appeal for neutrality comes against the backdrop of a bitter history of factional conflict within the MDP. Nasheed left the party after losing the 2023 presidential primary to Solih and formed The Democrats, which contested the presidential election separately. The split deepened divisions within the opposition ahead of the election, which Muizzu won after defeating Solih in the second round.

Nasheed and his........

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