India today said, the Maldives should create the necessary conditions for the participation of all political forces in the Presidential Elections.

External Affairs Ministry in a statement on political situation in the Maldives said, India reiterated its advice to the Maldives to restore the credibility of the electoral and political process by immediately releasing political prisoners including former President Gayoom and Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed.

The statement said, India believes that a democratic, stable and prosperous Maldives is in the interests of all its neighbours and friends in the Indian Ocean region. India also expressed dismay that the former President of the Maldives as well as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court are being sentenced to long prison terms without fair trial.