On 20th January, a 14-year-old Maldivian boy died as President Mohammed Muizzu reportedly refused to allow a Dornier aircraft provided by India to airlift him. As per Maldivian media, the boy was suffering from a brain tumour. He had suffered a stroke, after which his family requested an air ambulance to transport him from his residence in Gaaf Alif Villingili to Male, the capital of Maldives.
Maldivian media reported that the family accused the authorities of not providing medical evacuation promptly. Boy’s father told Adhadhu, a Maldivian news agency, that Island Aviation did not immediately respond to the family’s calls. He said, “We called Island Aviation to get him to Male immediately after the stroke, but they did not answer our calls. They answered the phone at 8:30 AM on Thursday. The solution is to have an air ambulance for such cases.”
Maldives MP Meekail Naseem quoted a report on the incident by Mihaaru on social media platform X and said, “People shouldn’t have to pay with their lives to satisfy the President’s animosity towards India.”
The boy was shifted to Male 16 hours after the family requested the emergency evacuation. Aasandha Company Limited, which received the evacuation request, claimed a technical problem with the aircraft led to the delay. The statement read that they had initiated the evacuation process, but “unfortunately, due to a technical problem with the flight at the last moment, the diversion was impossible as planned”. Since Muizzu took charge in the Maldives, Indian helicopters and planes are not used for emergency evacuation. They can be used only by direct permission from the President, which in this case was reportedly not provided.
Responding to the criticism for not using Indian aircraft for medical evacuation, Defence Minister Mohamed Ghassan claimed that 93 per cent of the evacuations were still being carried out by Maldivian Airlines. In a social media post, he said, “The SOPs (standard operation procedures) of medical operations do not require notifying or seeking permission from the President. That is something done through the coordination of relevant institutions.”
India-Maldives conflict
The diplomatic conflict between India and Maldives over social media posts related to tourism has added more tension to the situation. Notably, Muizzu’s party won the election based on the “India Out” movement targeting less than 100 Indian armed forces personnel stationed in the Maldives.
After winning the election, Muizzu gave an ultimatum to the Indian forces to leave Maldives by March 2024. Notably, Muizzu is a pro-China politician and recently visited the country to sign several MoUs. Reportedly, Muizzu is trying to reduce reliance on India and build alternate routes to fulfil the country’s requirements, including medical care.
At the beginning of January 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to Lakshadweep to launch some projects. During his visit, he promoted the Islands of Lakshadweep as a potential tourist destination. Following PM Modi’s visit, social media users urged Indian citizens to choose Lakshadweep over Maldives.
The social media posts irked a few deputy ministers in Maldives, who posted derogatory comments against PM Modi and the people of India, leading to a massive backlash from Indian users. The Maldivian government suspended three deputy ministers amid the backlash not only from Indians but also from those who are connected to the tourism industry in Maldives and the opposition.