Parliament moves to dismiss Judge Didi from Supreme Court

The Parliament has made the decision to dismiss Supreme Court Justice Abdulla Didi.

This is the first time in Maldives history that the parliament moved to dismiss a judge over disciplinary issues. The Judicial Service Commission (JSC)'s recommendation to impeach the judge was approved with the 72 out of 73 members voting in favor of the dismissal, while one member remained neutral.

Debating JSC's recommendation in parliament on Tuesday, all members spoke in support of impeaching Didi. While members representing main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) described the move as an important step towards judicial reform, many members called to 'cleanse' the whole Supreme Court.

While the judge has now been dismissed by the parliament, Maldives Police Service have made several serious allegations against the judge. Judge Didi is accused of using his position as a judge to receive suspicious funds laundered through Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) over multiple occasions. He is also accused of accepting bribes to release suspects involved in the abduction of Miniwan News journalist Ahmed Rilwan.

On Didi's request, JSC conducted an open investigation on his disciplinary issue, however, he did not respond to the allegations made against him during the investigation, and later responded in writing.

The JSC report on the investigation said Judge Didi had attempted to obtain undue advantages for himself and his family through some trials conducted at the Supreme Court.

The report said the Didi had violated the disciplinary guidelines that prohibit judges from accepting loans, gifts and other incentives from any party involved in any cases they oversee.

The report listed a message sent by Didi to an individual known as 'Suspect no. 1' to arrange a political position for his spouse. His wife was later appointed as Deputy Ambassador to Malaysia, read the report.

However, Didi raised several points against the committee report.

The response consisting of 11 points said the whole investigation was based on five documents provided by the police, and said he was not given an adequate opportunity to research and respond to the documents.

The statement further said while Didi is suspected of being involved in criminal activity, JSC does not have the jurisdiction to investigate such issues.

"I believe the committee report submitted to the Parliament is invalid as it is based on an invalid investigation that followed invalid procedures", said Didi.