Six people arrested in relation to the Yoga Day unrest have been released.
On June 21, a group stormed the National Stadium while an event to mark International Yoga Day was ongoing. The event was held despite religious scholars advising against it, as yoga is considered impermissible in Islam under several fatwas. Twenty-one people, including two religious scholars, were arrested, and only one was released until now. The remand of the remaining arrestees has been extended repeatedly.
Maldives Police Service said six people were released on Monday after looking into their involvement in the clashes. Despite their release, the investigation still continues, the police said.
While six people have been released, it does not include the two scholars, Sheikh Adam Nisham and Sheikh Fazloon Mohamed. The remand period for the scholars has been extended thrice, despite video footage from the event showing the scholars encouraging to maintain peace and not actively taking part in the clashes. As per the police, the two scholars incited violence and were behind the unrest. The police continue to request the court to extend their detention until the end of the trial.
