A Maldivian minister, who was suspended in January for her derogatory remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has now mocked the Indian flag after including parts of the flag in an altered campaign poster of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), according to a media report on Monday.

In a post on X, former deputy youth minister Mariyam Shiuna has apologised for the content of her post.

"I would like to address a recent social media post of mine that has garnered attention and criticism. I extend my sincerest apologies for any confusion or offense caused by the content of my recent post.," she wrote.

"It was brought to my attention that the image used in my response to the Maldivian opposition party MDP bore a resemblance to the Indian flag. I want to make it clear that this was entirely unintentional, and I sincerely regret any misunderstanding it may have caused," she wrote on X.

"Maldives deeply value its relationship and, the mutual respect we share with India. In future I will be more vigilant in verifying the content I share to prevent such oversights," the suspended junior minister posted.

She denied any intention to mock India and claimed to have used the design of the Indian flag "by mistake." However, she did not explain her reasons for using the logo of India's ruling BJP in the post that drew criticism, Adhadhu Online news portal reported on Monday.

Her post came ahead of the parliamentary elections in the Maldives on April 21.

Shiuna, who was suspended from the government earlier this year for "derogatory remarks" against Prime Minister Modi, shared the post with the mockery of the Indian flag on Saturday night.

The photo on the post made on her X account changed the MDP's campaign slogan and included the logo of India's ruling party.

After the photo drew criticism, Shiuna deleted the post and removed "Deputy Minister" from the bio of her X account.

Shiuna's post drew sharp criticism from the Indian media and members of the public, many of whom called on the Maldivian government to fire her and cited her suspension over previous derogatory remarks against India and Prime Minister Modi after he posted photos and video of the pristine Lakshadweep Islands on January 6 on his X handle.

Shiuna and two other deputy ministers at the Youth Ministry have been under suspension since January. The incident strained relations between the two countries and sparked a diplomatic row.

The Maldives is India’s key maritime neighbour in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and occupies a special place in its initiatives like ‘SAGAR’ (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and the ‘Neighbourhood First Policy’ of the Modi government.

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