Nasheed, Shahid at GMR Chairman Rao's family event

Mohamed Nasheed, the Maldivian Parliament Speaker and Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid attends a family event of GM Rao, the chairman of GMR.

The two, who are rumored to have found common political ground ahead of the 2023 presidential election, met at the private affair in India.

Nasheed was is on an unofficial visit while Shahid is attending India on an official trip as the UNGA President of the 76th session.

Earlier, Shahid met with the External Affairs Minister of India Dr. S Jaishankar. The two discussed on an array of topics, including additional ways to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries.

Nasheed and Shahid, reportedly met at the wedding ceremony of Rao's grandchild.

Pictures of the two clicked together have been making rounds on social media while, talks of their political alignment has become widely discussed in the local political sphere. While a majority of the Maldivian cabinet of ministers publicly addressed their political leanings between Nasheed and Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Shahid's stance has so far been ambigious.

After President Solih announced he will be contending for a second term, majority of the cabinet publicly endorsed the decision, however Shahid appeared silent on the matter. Despite this, Shahid took President Solih's side regarding the state governance issue, for which Nasheed had been intensely advocating to transition for a parliamentary system. Solih however, contests the current political situation demands Maldives should remain in a presidential system.

GMR first came to local recognition during Nasheed's administration. The management of Velana International Airport (then called Ibrahim Nasir International Airport) was awarded to GMR, a decision which would heavily trifle with sensitive Maldivian politics.

Allegations were made, following the decision, with opposition claiming it had been achieved with irreversible damage prospects to the Maldivian economy.

Both Shahid and the former leader of Democratic Republic Party (DRP) Ahmed Thasmeen were alleged of graft related to the GMR deal, which while they both denied, put them in hot water.

Maldives government reclaimed authority of VIA during interim president Mohamed Waheed's administration. Following this, GMR had filed a lawsuit at the Singapore Court of Arbitration seeking a money damage, which eventually reached MVR 4.1 billion.