Judicial Service Commission (JSC)'s public hearing of Supreme Court Judge Abdulla Didi commenced at the Dharubaaruge convention centre on Thursday.
The apex court judge is legally represented by former Vice President Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed who urged the state to conduct an impartial investigation in light of serious allegations against his client.
The proceeding marks the first instance of a public hearing regarding a Supreme Court judge.
The judicial watchdog recently formed a seven-member committee to investigate a total of five cases against Judge Didi. The Supreme Court Judge provided statements to JSC regarding these cases when he was summoned to the commission on Monday.
JSC ordered the suspension of Judge Abdulla Didi on June 12 citing an ongoing police investigation. However, the Supreme Court issued a stay order on JSC's suspension the following day.
The commission subsequently rejected the court's stay order and maintained that the suspension was in effect. In response, the Supreme Court issued an order nullifying any and all actions taken by the commission or other state institutions which disregarded the stay order.
The parliament unanimously declared the unconstitutionality of the Supreme Courts order on June 18 and called on the apex court to refrain from any action that violated the constitution or encroached on the parliament's authority.
The Judges' Association of Maldives also advised judges to cooperate with JSC's investigations and urged them to adhere to the code of conduct enacted by the commission.
Additionally, the association noted that judges are equal to civilians in front of the law and affirmed the association's belief that measures taken by JSC as part of transparent and unbiased investigations would pave the way for restoring trust in the Maldivian judiciary.
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