Parliament approves dismissal of Juvenile Court Judge Abdul Bari Yoosuf

The Parliament, on Monday, approved the dismissal of Juvenile Court Judge Abdul Bari Yoosuf and Chief Magistrate for the Dhaalu Judicial Constituency Abdulrazzaq Mohamed.

Judicial Service Commission (JSC) lodged the motion for the dismissal of Judge Bari earlier in November. In a circular issued following the submission, JSC revealed that the Juvenile Court Judge was under investigation for acquiring monetary gain from the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) corruption scandal.

The circular also stated that Bari was involved in a business venture from May 2014 to February 2018 and had failed to disclose the profit received from the endeavour in his asset declaration.

JSC suspended Judge Bari on December 12, 2019, after Maldives Police Service confirmed an ongoing investigation over the judge's implication in the MMPRC scandal.

Investigations also revealed that Bari maintained close ties with the former vice president, Ahmed Adeeb, who was convicted in the MMPRC case. It was revealed that the judge had sent a copy of the 13-year prison sentence for former President Mohamed Nasheed over terrorism charges before the ruling was officially announced on March 13, 2013.

According to the report compiled by the parliament's judiciary committee, JSC had followed due process and adhered to regulations in its decision to dismiss Bari.

The judicial watchdog decided to seek the dismissal of Dhaalu Judicial Constituency's chief magistrate over reopening two cases concluded by the Maaemboodhoo Court in Dhaalu Atoll. JSC revealed that the magistrate had provided misinformation throughout the cases.

JSC suspended the chief magistrate in January after the police informed the commission of their investigation into claims of forgery. The claim stems from a signature made on an agreement that was presented at the Kudahuvadhoo Court, Dhaalu Atoll concerning an ongoing case.

Additionally, Abdulrazzaq is accused of forwarding a case submitted to the Kudahuvadhoo Court to a magistrate of the Emboodhoo Court, despite the latter court not having the jurisdiction to accept the case.