President Mohamed Muizzu and his People’s National Congress on Wednesday further consolidated their position in parliament with six independent candidates, elected in Sunday’s polls, joining the ruling party.

The pro-China Maldivian President led the People’s National Congress (PNC) to win a landslide 66 out of 93 seats in parliament and its coalition partners Maldives National Party (MNP) and Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) won one and two seats, respectively. The six independent members joined the PNC at a function attended by President Muizzu, who is also the president of the party.

With the addition of the six independents, the PNC-led coalition now has the “super majority” in parliament with 78 seats, much more than two-thirds (63 seats) in the People’s Majlis.

The PNC’s “super majority” in parliamentary elections is being seen as a strong endorsement of his pro-Beijing foreign policy, as both India and China closely watched the outcome of the polls in the strategically-located archipelago nation in the Indian Ocean.

According to the news portal Sun.mv, a spokesperson from the PNC confirmed on Wednesday that six independent candidates joined the party on Tuesday.