PG silent over claims on validity of Qasim Ibrahim’s arrest

Prosecutor General (PG) Office has refused to issue a comment over the allegations that the arrest of Jumhooree Party (JP) Leader and Maamigili Constituency MP Qasim Ibrahim was in violation of clause 13(a) of the Parliament privileges and powers.

Clause 13 (a) stipulates that unless a Parliamentarian is caught red handed, the Parliamentarian can only be arrested if a superior Court or Supreme Court issues a warrant in connection to an ongoing criminal investigation. The clause also states that this can only proceed ahead with the go ahead from Prosecutor General.

Both Police and PG Office media official refused to divulge a comment on the questions posed by RaajjeMV.

Maldives Police Service is listed as co-respondent in the arrest warrant issued by Criminal Court on Qasim Ibrahim’s arrest on Thursday. The order listed that Police’s General Investigation Department was the agency investigating the case.

The order notes that that the Maamigillil constituency MP had attempted to bribe lawmakers in order to win the no-confidence vote against parliament speaker Abdulla Maseeh Mohamed, held on March 27, and is attempting to influence the no-confidence motion against the deputy speaker, which is scheduled for April 11. It also stated that Qasim has been attempting to influence the security forces as well.

Criminal Court set six days as Qasim’s remand following his arrest on Thursday. His appeal was filed in High Court on Sunday. However, Court had refused to accept the documentation filed with appeal.