Adhaalath Party’s gathering PHOTO: Adhaalath Party
Religiously conservative Adhaalath Party (AP) has requested at the lower court to intervene in the case filed by President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom’s faction of the divided ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) seeking to postpone the upcoming Local Council Elections.
President Yameen’s faction requested to postpone the Local Council Elections from its original date of January 14, 2017 by two months, claiming that it has not been able to prepare sufficiently for the elections due to operation difficulties of PPM following the party’s split into two factions, one loyal to the president and the other to his half-brother and party leader Maumoon.
Vice President of Adhaalath Party Ali Zahir confirmed that they have requested to intervene in the case, but they have not received a response from the Civil Court yet.
Meanwhile, main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has also been allowed to intervene in the case, which is currently in the stage of taking statements from the parties involved. The trial hearings will commence afterwards.
As it is an ongoing case, the court has released a temporary order allowing re-registration for the local elections to be carried out indefinitely.