Maldives bypolls: First political test for President Waheed

Male: Maldivians today voted in bypolls for two key Parliamentary constituencies, in what is being seen as the first test of public support for the new regime headed by President Mohammed Waheed after the ouster of his predecessor in February. The voting started at 8 am local time and the results are expected to come out by this evening. [caption id=“attachment_276159” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The by-elections are being seen by observers as the first political test for Waheed, who earlier served as the deputy of Hassan. AP”]  [/caption] Both the ruling coalition and opposition MDP of toppled President Mohammed Nasheed are hoping to clinch the two crucial seats. Nasheed says that he was forced to resign on 7 February in what he claims was a coup d’etat. His resignation had followed weeks of protests against him over the arrest of a judge of a criminal court. The by-elections are being seen by observers as the first political test for Waheed, who earlier served as the deputy of Hassan. Hassan’s party has been demanding early polls in the country ever since he was ousted from power. The 77-member Maldivian Parliament has 31 MPs belonging to the Maldivian Democratic Party, 16 from Dhivehi Raiyyithunge Party; 16 from Progressive Party of Maldives; and the rest are either independent or belong to smaller parties. PTI