Chief Justice Abdul Ghani Mohamed has established the special task force he pledged to address the large backlog of long‑pending cases in the Maldivian courts.
The Chief Justice announced the decision during the opening session of the judicial year on Sunday evening, where he described the backlog as “unacceptable” and stressed that timely justice is the judiciary’s foremost responsibility. He revealed that 13,032 cases have remained pending for more than a year across the court system.
According to the Supreme Court press release on Tuesday, the task force consists of nine members representing different levels of the judiciary. Their names were not disclosed.
The court said the task force will focus on identifying administrative obstacles that delay case processing and implementing solutions to expedite the resolution of long‑pending cases. The Chief Justice noted that clearing the backlog requires structural and procedural reform, not just additional manpower.
The Criminal Court has previously stated that it expects its backlog to be cleared by the end of this year.
In late December, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu also pledged that court proceedings involving detainees would be completed before the end of March.