Ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) on Tuesday axed MP Mohamed Ameeth from the party after he violated the party whip-line for the censure vote against the parliament speaker the day before.
PPM disciplinary committee had voted unanimously to remove Ameeth from the party, after he went against the three line whip issued by the party for the censure motion against parliament speaker Abdulla Maseeh.
Ameeth had tweeted declaring his defection from the party’s whip and encouraged other members of the parliament to do the same.
Ameeth had walked out of the sitting with opposition lawmakers over the row for a roll-call vote.
Before the historic vote, lawmakers voted in favour of taking an individual roll-call vote proposed by majority leader Ahmed Nihan Hussain Manik.
Opposition lawmakers had protested the move but the motion was put to vote despite angry opposition lawmakers surrounding the deputy speaker in an attempt to block the vote.
The protests prompted the deputy speaker to delay the vote by nearly an hour. Attempts to resume the sitting was again blocked which resulted in the naming of as many as 13 opposition lawmakers. Some of the lawmakers had to be removed forcibly by soldiers entrusted with parliament security.
After removing the named lawmakers, when it was finally put to the roll-call vote, the remaining opposition MPs had walked out and the motion was defeated comfortably with 48 government lawmakers voting against the motion.
Former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who had been the President of PPM was also removed from the party on Monday evening.
