Dejected Nasheed warns India it would lose influence to China

8220;My question to Indian establishment is that if they think we did not perform,do they think this is a better option?8221; asked the 44-year-old who was the first democratically elected President of Maldives,who ascended to power in 2008 after a democratic revolution overthrew Gayoom8217;s 30-year-rule.

8220;Unlike PPM,we are a group of people who strongly believe in India,their role and functions in Indian Ocean and the relationship that we want with India,8221; he said at his residence.

This is not the first time Nasheed has expressed unhappiness with India8217;s response to the political crisis that saw him being deposed last week in what he termed was a coup.

Last week,Nasheed made it plain that he was disappointed that India responded to the crisis without understanding the ground situation in his country.

Nasheed said while India and the US both had failed to gauge the ground reality,it was the smaller European nations that are trying to find out what the situation is and what will be best way forward.

He said India must understand the situation in Maldives and it was 8220;very strange8221; if it has not.

8220;The thing is India takes us for granted unlike the PPM. I think this is the biggest reason,a more logical reason. They know we will be with them. It is an ideological thing for us,8221; said the former president.