Supreme Court has canceled the hearing scheduled today to decide on the interim orders sought in the case challenging the constitutional amendment that would cause a member of Parliament to lose their seat if they are expelled from or leave the party they were initially elected to.
The hearing had been set for 11:00 am today, and both lawyers and listeners had been admitted to the session. However, the administrative table informed the lawyers shortly before the hearing that it had been canceled without providing any explanation.
Around 15 minutes before the hearing, the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) suspended three Supreme Court judges including Husnu Su'ood, Mahaz Ali Zahir, and Dr Azmiralda Zahir.
As a result of the suspension of these three judges, the full bench of the Supreme Court, which is hearing the case, cannot proceed without a quorum.
The suspension of these judges came shortly after Parliament passed a bill to amend the Judicature Act, which would reduce the number of Supreme Court judges from seven to five.
This bill also requires the JSC to investigate and potentially dismiss two Supreme Court judges. However, judicial experts have noted that there is no possibility of passing a law to remove judges, and Parliamentary Counsel General Fathimath Filza has reiterated this point.
The constitutional case filed in the Supreme Court seeks an order preventing any state agency from interfering with the Court's independence, stating that the Supreme Court has the authority to issue such an order to prevent undue influence on its work.
They also sought an interim order today to prohibit any actions against Parliament members under the recently amended constitutional provision.
JSC suspends Supreme Court judges Su'ood, Azmiralda and Mahaz
The Edition