PM Modi attends Maldives President Solih's swearing-in ceremony

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday attended the swearing-in ceremony of Maldives President-elect Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, who surprisingly defeated strongman Abdulla Yameen in September.

During the swearing-in ceremony of Solih, Modi was sitting beside former Maldivian presidents Mohamed Nasheed and Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. Former Sri Lankan president Chandrika Kumaratunga also attended the ceremony.

Modi interacted with leaders from the Maldives and other parts of the world during the oath taking ceremony.

Solih, 54, the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party's candidate, had surprisingly emerged victorious over incumbent president Yameen in the election held on September 23.

On arrival in the Maldivian capital, Prime Minister Modi was given a red carpet welcome and was received by Maldives Parliament Speaker Abdulla Maseeh Mohamed.

This is Modi's first visit to the Maldives as prime minister. The last visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the Indian Ocean island nation was by Manmohan Singh in 2011.

In a series of tweets ahead of the visit, Modi had tweeted, "I will convey to the new Maldivian Government of Mr Solih the desire of the Indian Government to work closely for realisation of their developmental priorities, especially in areas of infrastructure, health care, connectivity & human resource development,"