PPM accuses Indian newspaper of defaming Gayoom
Reacting angrily to an article on the Mumbai Mirror about a radicalised Maldivian family of 12 joining Islamic State, the PPM said it contained “factual inaccuracies and fabrications,” and called it “an attack on the country of Maldives, its peace-loving citizens, and its authorities.”
24 Apr 2016, 9:00 AM
The ruling Progressive Party of Maldives has accused an Indian newspaper of defaming its leader and the Maldivian government in a story about a radicalised Maldivian family who evaded the authorities to join Islamic State.
The Mumbai Mirror reported Friday that a 100-hour Indo-US operation failed to stop the family of 12 from traveling to the Middle East last December after transiting in Bangalore.
The paper raised fears of the Maldives turning into “a hotbed of extremism” and “a jihadi outpost,” and suggested former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom made Maldivians “more conservative and vulnerable to religious extremism” during his 30-year reign.
Reacting furiously to the article – which was widely shared by Maldivians on social media – the PPM claimed it contained “factual inaccuracies and fabrications,” and called it “an attack on the country of Maldives, its peace-loving citizens, and its authorities.”
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