Following ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member Subramanian Swamy’s controversial statement regarding India invading Maldives, its ministry of external affairs has stated that his opinion ‘does not reflect’ the view of the government.

Swamy, who recently met with opposition leader and former President Mohamed Nasheed, recently tweeted that ‘India should invade Maldives if rigging of election takes place’ with a link to a RaajjeMV news article regarding his meeting with Nasheed.

While this had led to public outrage, both the government and opposition have condemned Swamy’s call.

In a short press release issued on Sunday, India’s external affairs ministry said that ‘the opinion expressed by Dr. Swamy in his tweet is personal opinion’, adding that ‘it does not reflect the views of the Government of India’.

Relations between India and Maldives hit an all time low in recent times, especially over China’s increased influence in the archipelago nation.

In addition, India’s call to implement Supreme Court’s controversial February ruling and lift the state of emergency were criticized by Maldivian authorities.

The government accused India of issuing public statements ‘that ignore facts and ground realities with regard to the ongoing political developments’.