The Judicial Service Commission has decided to summon suspended Supreme Court Judges Mahaz Ali Zahir and Dr Azmiralda Zahir to question them regarding the disciplinary cases that are being proceeded against them.
The Judicial Service Commission has decided to summon suspended Supreme Court Judges Mahaz Ali Zahir and Dr Azmiralda Zahir to question them regarding the disciplinary cases that are being proceeded against them.
Judge Mahaz Ali Zahir is to be summoned today while Judge Dr Azmiralda Zahir is to present herself at JSC on Monday.
While both judges are suspended in relation to a case being investigated by the Anti Corruption Commission, JSC is also probing disciplinary issues against the two.
One of the cases being investigated against them is their presence while Judge HusnuSuood used 'offensive language' to address former Assistant Registrar of High Court Hussain Mohamed Haneef after he was summoned to the Supreme Court.
JSC maintains that while Suood used indecent language to address Haneef in October 2022, Azmiralda and Mahaz must bear equal responsibility for the incident. Due to this, they opened the disciplinary cases against them.
Earlier, JSC had decided to open a similar investigation in the case against Suood as well. However, this case has been discontinued after Suood handed in his resignation last week.
The other case being investigated against the two judges is allegations that they called a Criminal Court judge and intimidated them, which is a case submitted by a private individual.
Judge Dr Azmiralda's lawyers, however, have said that these are baseless accusations. They asserted that the judge has not called any other judges regarding the case, and had not exerted any influence, submitting details in a letter to JSC.
Judges Dr Amiralda, Mahaz and Suood were suspended just fifteen minutes before a hearing was scheduled in the case regarding the constitutional amendment on parliamentarians losing their seats.
Meanwhile, the Parliament last week passed an amendment to the Judicature Act to reduce the number of judges on the Supreme Court bench from seven to five. The move has met with concerns from legal experts that it is unconstitutional, and remains unratified by President Dr Mohamed Muizzu as of yet.
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