Supreme Court ready to rule in cases regarding two 'dismissed' lawmakers

The Supreme Court has concluded proceedings for MP Ahmed Ilham and MP Saudhulla Hilmy’s case seeking that the Elections Commission decision removing them from parliament be overturned.

The hearing held on Tuesday is the first in the case and the next hearing will be held to issue a verdict. The lawmakers were dismissed on the grounds of a Supreme Court ruling against floor-crossing.

The ruling however stated that despite floor-crossing being cause for dismissal according to the constitution, a law on the matter must first be passed.

While such a law was ratified after Ilham’s dismissal, Ilham’s lawyer said at the hearing on Tuesday that the law does not apply to him as he switched parties before the Supreme Court ruling in the matter.

Although the Elections Commission has since nullified their previous decision and decided to reinstate the lawmakers, their lawyer said in court that Ilham was officially removed from the ruling party’s registry on 20th July, 2017 while the apex court released its decision on 13th July.

MP Saudhulla was removed from the party’s registry on 31st July. Both lawmakers had filed their leave from the party weeks before the decision, but the party had delayed processing it.

Ilham and Saudhulla are among 12 lawmakers dismissed by the commission on grounds of floor-crossing. Four of these lawmakers have been reinstated by the Supreme Court in hearings held earlier this month.

While the Elections Commission reversed the decision they made and maintained for over a year, the Supreme Court formally quashed it, claiming that its bench is currently presiding over cases that involve the decision.

The Joint Opposition, a coalition of parties with which all 12 lawmakers are aligned, has said that the floor-crossing verdict and the subsequent law were the result of political maneuvering carried out by pro-government lawmakers in order to deter the dismissal of embattled parliament speaker Abdulla Maseeh.