Hearing on obstruction charge against MP Mahloof scheduled for Sunday

The second preliminary hearing of the case against Member of Parliament (MP) for Galolhu Dhekunu Constituency Ahmed Mahloof alleging him of obstructing a law enforcement officer has been scheduled for 13:00 hrs on Sunday.

At the first preliminary hearing held on 3rd May, MP Mahloof said that it is obvious that the police misuse their power often since everyone can see them using pepper spray on peaceful protesters. He added that the report released by Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) on freedom of assembly also highlights the issue. Therefore the parliamentarian stated that he will continue to distribute safety masks to the public when necessary.

Parliament member Mahloof distributed masks at an opposition rally held on 22nd February and he was arrested around 22:40 under the state of emergency which lasted 45 days. The allegations raised against him accused the parliamentarian of continuing to protest on the streets and distributing masks regardless of the police asking him to leave the area due to traffic jams.

MP Ahmed Mahloof responded to the allegations by denying to have protested in a way that would cause traffic issues and said that he was arrested while inside Maldivian Democratic Party's (MDP) campaign office. Furthermore, he stated that he went to the campaign office in a car which dropped him off around 10 ft away from the office and that he walked right into the office without waiting on the street. MP Mahloof also said that he distributed the masks inside the campaign office as well. He was arrested by the police from the campaign office soon after his arrival.

Additionally, MP Mahloof confirmed that he had received information regarding the arrest prior to the actual arrest and stated that the reason for the recent arrests of opposing politicians is to intimidate the opposition's efforts to establish a democratic government.