Maldives govt moves Supreme Court over rules changes simplifying oppn’s impeachment bid on president

Amid the opposition's move to impeach Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu, the ruling dispensation has taken its concerns over recent amendments to Parliament's standing orders to the Supreme Court.

This comes as the legislative body, consisting of 87 members, recently amended its standing orders, simplifying the process of initiating an impeachment motion.Several pro-Muizzu lawmakers resigned from the Maldivian Parliament in November so that they could attain cabinet positions, however, the opposition amended the rules which barred these vacated seats when counting the total number of MPs.

The amendment card played by the opposition reduced the required votes for impeachment from 58 to 54.

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It is worth noting that the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and the Democrats command 56 Members of Parliament, with 43 hailing from the MDP and 13 from the Democrats. This has become a major issue for Muizzu's ruling People’s National Congress party as the MDP-Democrats alliance now possesses the potential to impeach the president.

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Earlier, a special parliamentary session was convened to secure approval for President Muizzu's cabinet ministers. While 18 out of 22 names obtained parliamentary endorsement, four-faced disapproval, leading to a halt in proceedings and a heated confrontation among lawmakers.

Notably, the ruling PPM-PNC alliance, lacking a parliamentary majority, clashed with the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP). The dispute arose over the approval of cabinet members and escalated into a conflict between pro-government and opposition MPs.

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The Attorney General’s Office filed the case on Sunday (Jan 28), coinciding with clashes in the parliament over the cabinet approvals. Attorney General Ahmed Usham confirmed the filing of the case on Sunday, expressing that the Supreme Court had yet to register it, media reports said.

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Meanwhile, the MDP, having collected enough signatures for an impeachment motion, has not submitted it as of now.

President Muizzu, who defeated the India-friendlyIbrahim Mohamed Solih in September, has faced heavy criticism from Maldives lawmakers for his anti-India stance.

(With inputs from agencies)