Opposition lawmakers have again filed a motion of no confidence against Attorney General Mohamed Anil at the parliament.
The motion was filed with the signatures of 29 opposition aligned parliamentarians. The opposition coalition had filed to impeach AG Anil on July 20 as well. However, the parliament administration had quashed the motion, stating that it was not a resolution that could be submitted under Subject 82 of the Constitution.
One of the main reasons stated by the opposition to impeach AG Anil accuses him of violating Subjects 6, 5 and 7 of the Maldivian Constitution regarding the Separation of Powers. The opposition claims that Anil has worked to politically influence the work of lawmakers.
The motion of no confidence against the attorney general comes in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling that ousts lawmakers who defect from the political parties they were registered in at the time of parliament elections. It was AG Anil that had filed at the top court on behalf of the government to seek the anti-defection verdict.
Amidst high criticism, AG Anil had again filed a case at the Supreme Court on Wednesday, this time seeking to annul the clause in the Political Parties Act which states that individuals will preserve their lawfully elected seats even if they face expulsion from their political parties over violating the party’s charter.
Parliament regulations state that ministers must be officially notified within a fortnight if a motion of no confidence was filed against them. The regulations accord ministers the right to defend themselves verbally and in writing during the parliament debate on the impeachment.
A motion of no confidence can be passed against ministers only with the majority of Parliament voting in favour of impeachment, which is total 43 members.
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