India sends back asylum-seeking ex-vice president to Maldives

India has handed over former vice president Ahmed Adeeb to Maldivian authorities after he tried to illegally enter the southern city of Thoothukudi.

Adeeb was held for questioning on Thursday after he arrived at the Tuticorin port as a stowaway on a tugboat. The Indian authorities were reportedly tipped off after a crew member alerted the ship’s agent to an unregistered passenger.

The 37-year-old was not allowed to disembark despite seeking asylum over alleged coercion and politically motivated prosecutions. The Indian external affairs ministry said Adeeb was denied entry because he did not seek to enter “through a designated entry point and did not possess the valid [travel] document.”

Late on Friday night, the Indian coastguard escorted the Virgo 9 tugboat to the maritime border and handed Adeeb and the nine crew members to Maldivian security officials, a Maldives government source confirmed to the Maldives Independent.