Police in the Maldives on Sunday arrested former president Mohamed Nasheed under an anti-terror law for the alleged illegal detention of a judge when he was in power more than three years ago.
Nasheed, the country's first democratically elected president who now leads the main opposition party, was taken into custody in the capital island of Male, police said.
As he was being taken to the nearby Dhoonidhoo prison islet, hundreds of his supporters clashed with police who used pepper spray to keep them at bay.
Nasheed came to power in 2008 and stepped down four years later following a police and military mutiny.
Last week the state prosecutor dropped charges of abuse of power against Nasheed for allegedly ordering the arrest of the then-criminal court chief judge Abdullah Mohamed in January 2012.
Advertisement
Nasheed's office accused the government of "re-prosecuting... under trumped-up charges of terrorism".
Advertisement
Nasheed's Maldivian Democratic Party urged the international community to press the government of President Abdulla Yameen to order his release.
Advertisement
The case is due to be heard on Monday afternoon, Minivan said.
Advertisement
He lost the controversial November 2013 presidential election to Yameen, the half-brother of former strongman Maumoon Abdul Gayoom who had ruled the Indian Ocean atoll nation of 330,000 Sunni Muslims for three decades.
COMMENTS
Advertisement
Pak-Origin Man, Involved In 26/11 Terror Attack, Extraditable To India: US Court Rajnath Singh Chairs Key Security Meet Over Rising Terror Attacks In J&K S Jaishankar Inaugurates India-Funded Water, Sanitation Project In Maldives Life On Earth Originates From One Ancestor, Older Than Previously Believed Omar Abdullah On What Should Be J&K Assembly's 1st Move After Polls Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah To Be Prosecuted In Land Scam Case Telangana Man Dies In US, Family Asks Government To Help Bring Back Body JAM 2025: All You Need To Know About Joint Admission Test For Masters Rajasthan Bans Sharp-Edged Objects In School After 15-Year-Old Stabbed Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.