NEW DELHI — Police clashed with protesters Monday in the tiny Indian Ocean nation of Maldives, amid deepening political turmoil after a court order delayed a third attempt to elect a president.
Late Sunday, the sitting president, Mohammed Waheed Hassan, said he would not end his term at midnight, the date specified in the country's constitution. He said he would instead remain in power until Nov. 16, the Supreme Court's proposed date for a runoff between the two leading presidential candidates.
Hundreds of opposition supporters had massed on the street ahead of his announcement, calling on Hassan to leave the presidency, and police forces in riot gear used pepper spray and batons to disperse the crowd, witnesses said.
Voters went to the polls Saturday, and many hoped to end a deadlock between factions within the government: forces loyal to Mohamed Nasheed, who was elected president in 2008; and those of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who ruled the country for the previous 30 years.
Nasheed won 47 percent — a commanding lead over his closest rival, Gayoom's brother, but not enough to avoid a runoff, originally scheduled for Sunday. The Sunday vote was delayed at the last minute by the country's Supreme Court, which is widely seen as loyal to Gayoom.
Alok Bansal, an expert on the region, said the delays have been aimed "to stall Nasheed's coming to power," so that Gayoom's allies could guarantee victory in the upcoming runoff. He said the crisis would not be resolved without "an honest mediator."