Case filed requesting a stay order on implementing amendment to the Political Parties Act, which states persons defeated in party primaries cannot compete at the relevant election has begun at the Supreme Court.
The case which also demands the Supreme Court to nullify the amendment was filed by Abdulla Jabir and Abdulla Maniu Hussain. Of the two individuals, Jabir faced defeat in the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) primaries for the upcoming parliamentary elections.
At the first hearing of the case, presided by the full strength of the Supreme Court bench, the judges decided to make the Elections Commission intervene in the case. The bench also granted the state additional time to respond to the case.
The case was submitted as a constitutional case and the plaintiffs requested the court to pass a verdict before the parliamentary elections. The first hearing was adjourned after scheduling a case for next Sunday, where the commission will also be represented.
The said amendment to the Political Parties Act was submitted and endorsed at parliament following the local council elections in 2017. The amendment states persons defeated in party primaries cannot compete at the relevant election even as an independent or representing another party.