Police in the Maldives detained opposition leader Mohamed Nasheed on Tuesday, defying pressure from regional power India which had called for him to be free to campaign for elections. "A large number of policemen arrested him in (the capital) Male a short while ago," spokesman Shauna Aminath told AFP by telephone. The Maldivian government said the 45-year-old, the country's first democratically elected president, was "taken into custody" on a court order and would be taken before a judge in a couple of days.

The Maldivian government Sunday denied any deal to allow former president Mohamed Nasheed to end his refuge at the Indian embassy in the capital and resume election campaigning without fear of arrest. Presidential spokesman Abbas Riaz said Nasheed walked out of the embassy on Saturday afternoon of his own will and there was no agreement with an Indian mediator who rushed to the Maldives last week to resolve a tense standoff.

Former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed left the Indian embassy in the capital Male on Saturday, 10 days after his dramatic flight to the mission to evade arrest for alleged abuse of power. Nasheed sought refuge at the embassy on February 13, straining ties between India and its tiny neighbour, after an arrest warrant was issued following his failure to attend court for what he called a "politically motivated" trial.

Former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed left the Indian embassy in the capital Male on Saturday, 10 days after his dramatic flight to the mission to evade arrest for alleged abuse of power. Nasheed sought refuge at the embassy on February 13, straining ties between India and its tiny neighbour, following an arrest warrant that was issued after he failed to attend court for what he called a "politically motivated" trial.