I'm not sure India's yoga day celebrations helped China enter Maldives

(A bridge construction platform can be seen offshore in front of a building constructed at the edge of the southwest harbor of Maldives' capital island Male' in preparation for the construction of  the bridge linking Male' with Vilimale, Gulhifalhu, and Thilafushi that is being built by India's Afcons (https://www.afcons.com/en), which the company describes on its website as the "Best Infrastructure Company In India". PHOTO: HILATH)

Obviously there are much larger geopolitical issues rather than just the Indian High Commission marking International Yoga Day at the main soccer stadium in Male', the capital island of Maldives, which opened the door for China to enter into Maldives, as the following article opines on The Hindu's Frontline publication.

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Clearly, the Maldivian election was more than an India versus China battle: both India and China were only part of a larger narrative that shaped the election campaign. Ibu Solih’s governance was lacklustre, and his decision to incentivise people of the island of Male to move to the newly created Hulumale island led to charges of nepotism and favouritism. Besides, his fight with Nasheed occupied more space and time than issues of critical importance. In short, local issues played a large part in sinking Ibu Solih.

It is in this context that the 2023 election needs to be viewed. China’s “string of pearls” strategy to encircle India is one more step closer to becoming a geopolitical reality with the electoral defeat of the India-leaning Solih in the September 30 run-off election. String of pearls refers to a series of ports and allied facilities that extend from the Chinese mainland to the port in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa. The facilities in the Indian Ocean Region—Gwadar (Pakistan), Hambantota (Sri Lanka), Chittagong (Bangladesh), and Sittwe (Myanmar)—effectively encircle India. China claims that this deployment is to protect its trade interests. READ MORE FROM FRONTLINE