- Nasheed granted political refugee status
- Will return back on own discretion
- Legal team had requested for an extension to medical leave
The UK has granted asylum for former President Mohamed Nasheed. Nasheed has been living in the UK after he was granted leave to go abroad for medical treatment.
Speaking to Avas, Nasheed's lawyer, Hassan Latheef said the Nasheed has been granted political refugee status and that this was a formal status granted by the UK government. He added that there was no point in the Government seeking to bring him back to the Maldives.
Nasheed yesterday had requested the Maldives Correctional Service to grant an extension to his medical leave up to August 23, 2015. Hassan added that full medical treatment can only be completed with this extension. Hassan said that returning back to the Maldives was at the discretion of the former President.
Nasheed's request for a 30 day extension had been granted by the Government previously. The extension had expired last Thursday.
