India, Jan. 4 -- The US sudden military operation in Venezuela that captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, shocked the world and raised urgent questions about motive and legality.

President Donald Trump described the capture as a strategic victory and said the US would 'run' the country in the interim while ushering in a transition of power. Critics have suggested that access to Venezuela's vast oil reserves and countering geopolitical rivals also influenced the decision.

One of the central reasons cited by the US is criminality and drug trafficking. A major indictment by the Southern District of New York accuses Maduro, his family and close associates of leading a corrupt regime that collaborated with violent dru...