Maldives Democratic Party (MDP) has lost its supermajority in the parliament as 12 members belonging to the Fikuregge Dhirun movement quit the party on Wednesday.

The total number of MDP parliamentarians stood at 68 with their recent victory in the Guraidhoo by-election.

Opposition PPM has five members, PNC has three members, MNP has three members, JP has two members, MDA has two members along with four independent candidates.

However, with the resignation of 12 MDP members today, the total number of MDP members in the parliament has now dropped to 56. The total number of opposition members is at 15, without the inclusion of members from parties that have decided to support the President at the upcoming election, and independent candidates.

With this, President Solih's government is expected to face further challenges within the parliament itself mainly fueled by the inclusion of 12 additional members in the opposition, putting them up to 27 total members.

The total number of members who work in the opposition could rise to as high as 32 members if independent candidates were to be counted along with Ali Azim who was recently dismissed from MDP.

While the second term of the parliament for the year is to begin tomorrow, the changes are expected to bring heated debates to the parliament floor.