Riyaz given two days to appoint any other lawyer
Noorusalaam is suspended, cannot accept him; says Police
Kimbidhoo Constituency MP and former Commissioner of Police Abdullah Riyaz
Maldives Police Service (MPS) has ordered Kimbidhoo Constituency MP and former Commissioner of Police Abdullah Riyaz to appoint a legal representation other than lawyer Noorusalaam Aboobakr.
MPS had given the Parliamentarian two days to appoint another lawyer and answer his summons on Sunday at 2PM.
The notice states that Riyaz is accused of 'spreading false information, creating dissent among the public, interfering with police procedures and defaming the police via the media'.
MP Riyaz had submitted himself to MPS headquarters, as specified in the summons, at 8pm on Thursday. There he was instructed to appoint another lawyer to represent him as his lawyer Noorusalaam was currently under suspension.
Speaking to press regarding Police instruction, the lawyer said the suspension was only applicable to trials in Court and did not prevent him from representing his clients in ongoing investigations. He had pointed out that the Supreme Court circular only banned suspended lawyers from litigating. The ruling, he said was not applicable to their part in offering legal assistance during investigations.
However, he said Police had denied him from taking part in the investigation.
Noorusalaam noted that a Government agency, such as the MPS, did not have the authority to translate the verdict for their own use. Any attempt to that nature, he said, would mean that agency was in contempt of the Court.
MP Riyaz denied that he had any part in the accusations made against him, adding that this cannot be proven in an independent investigation and trial.
