Former Attorney General and lawyer of Chief Judge of High Court Ahmed Shareef, Husnu Al Suood has said that a case will be filed to Civil Court regarding the indefinite suspension of Ahmed Shareef by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).
Referring to the decision by the JSC to suspend Shareef, which was passed by three votes in favour, Husnu Al Suood said that this decision imposes influence on judges and impedes the freedom of judges, and a case will be filed to Civil Court on Sunday to prove this claim.
Husnu Al Suood questioned the motive behind the suspension, and noted that this action against the chief judge was taken after the cancellation of a session of the trial regarding the procedural issues filed by former President Mohamed Nasheed, questioning the legitimacy of the Hulhumale’ Court bench. Husnu Al Suood said that the suspension of the chief judge was a politically motivated move.
“We suspect that the issue was politically influenced because it was decided by three members… We have to check who participated in the voting, when the matter was put on the agenda, whether it was brought to the attention of the [JSC] members, whether the procedures were duly followed, and why the matter was put on the agenda suddenly; we have to see if the matter was out put the agenda sequentially,” he said.
Husnu Al Suood said that JSC cannot take action against the chief judge of High Court while the case against JSC is in progress in High Court regarding the appointment of judges to Hulhumale’ Court. He said that this decision involves conflict of interest and violates all conceptions of the justice system.