On the fourth anniversary of the bomb attack that left former president Nasheed gravely injured, the Democrats urged the government and authorities to expedite justice for the assassination attempt. In a statement, they highlighted that the sole conviction in the case was that of the individual who admitted to the crime. Addressing parliament questions on Tuesday, Defence Minister Ghassan Maumoon acknowledged the near-fatal attack was the result of a security breach.
Separately, answering questions submitted by MPs, Ghassan also spoke about India’s military presence in the Maldives which became a pivotal issue in the 2023 presidential election. An MDP MP raised concerns about the current government’s earlier claim that 1,000 Indian soldiers were stationed in the country, seeking clarification on whether they had been withdrawn and the nature of any weaponry they possessed. Ghassan said that the 75 Indian military personnel stationed in the country had been withdrawn by May 2024 and that they were unarmed. Ghassan stated that efforts to amend bilateral agreements with India were still underway, and suggested that confidentiality clauses prevented the government from fulfilling its campaign promise to disclose the agreements publicly.
A parliamentary judiciary committee meeting to review the contentious JSC recommendation for the dismissal of two Supreme Court justices was postponed then abruptly cancelled. The first session of the review took place on Monday, during which the committee opted to examine documents submitted by the JSC before determining whether to summon witnesses. Tuesday’s meeting was initially set for 11am, later rescheduled for 1pm, and then cancelled at the last minute without any official explanation. Meanwhile, suspended Supreme Court Justice Azmiralda’s legal team pushed back against the JSC’s recommendation for her dismissal. Lawyer Shameel talked to the press, accusing the JSC of engineering the inquiry against the justice and of disregarding key evidence, basing its conclusion on speculation rather than substantiated fact.
Nine countries in the Indian Ocean region are taking part in a naval defence exercise organised by India near Malé. Indian coast guard ship IOS Sagar is in the Maldives for the exercise, in which officers will train in the use of weapons at sea and rescue operations using helicopters.
Three Bangladeshi men were arrested, following an incident in which a fleeing pickup truck discarded 221 cartons of cigarettes in a black bag. Cigarette and tobacco smuggling has increased in the Maldives since new regulations banned vape devices and increased taxes on other tobacco products.
Senior customs officials told parliament that some individual fines of over MVR 40 million (US$2.6 million) for smuggling vape devices cannot be easily collected. The new regulations carry fines of MVR 50,000 (US$3,242) for smuggling vape devices, with an additional fine of MVR 10,000 (US$650) for each device smuggled.