Vice President of the Maldives Trade Union, Adam Azim, has been arrested on charges of attempting to overthrow the government. 

Azim, who is also the Minister of Trade at the Maldives United Opposition's shadow cabinet, was arrested on Thursday. 

He is the brother of former Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim, who is serving a jail sentence for a weapons possession charge he denied in court. 

Shortly after the state sentenced his brother, Azim had resigned from his position as the Managing Director of the State Trading Organization.