INDIAN TROOPS SOUGHT AFTER CRACKDOWN

The opposition in the Maldives pleaded with India to send troops to the islands Tuesday after the president declared a state of emergency and arrested supreme court judges and political opponents.

The island state plunged into political chaos last week when the high court quashed the convictions of nine opposition leaders and ruled that their trials were politically motivated.

President Abdulla Yameen defied the court’s ruling and, instead of freeing the jailed politicians, he accused the supreme court of planning “a coup” against him.

On Sunday, Yameen declared a state of emergency and government troops stormed the supreme court building. They arrested Abdulla Saeed, the chief justice, and another judge.

Police also arrested the president’s half-brother, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, an 80-year-old former dictator of the Maldives who has become an unlikely opposition figure.