Trial begins on obstruction charges over ex-President Maumoon, jailed justices
The rushed hearing on Wednesday comes after the defense requested the court to give them 30 days to prepare for the trial according to criminal procedure
Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed
The Criminal Court is set to begin the trial on Wednesday on obstruction charges against former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Supreme Court Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed, and Justice Ali Hameed.
The rushed hearing comes after the defense requested the court to give them 30 days to prepare.
The final preliminary hearing on Tuesday was held without former President Maumoon due to his ill health.
At Tuesday’s hearing, the presiding judge refused every request proposed by the defense but did allow two requests from the state. The state asked that witness testimonies be made secret and be heard via video conference and that the documents with their information be made confidential.
The defense requested that the obstruction charges be withdrawn as it is pertaining to a Supreme Court order which meant that the charges are unconstitutional. The defense also requested that the submission form for the criminal charges be nullified since they were signed by someone other than the Prosecutor General.
The defense, consisting of Chief Justice Saeed and Justice Hameed at the hearing, also requested that the court not accept some evidence presented by the state and also that the information of witnesses to be presented by the defense also be made secret.
The judge scheduled the trial to begin on Wednesday. However, the defense objected by invoking articles 118 and 140 of the criminal code, which state that a period of 30 days be given before the trial begins in order to prepare a defense.
But the judge was not moved and decided to begin the trial on Wednesday and also to hold Maumoon’s final preliminary hearing on the same day.
