Opposition defends ex-Islamic minister over Dr Afrasheem murder report

The opposition parties condemned the alleged slander of Dr Shaheem in connection with the commission’s report, which was made public on Sunday evening after key findings were revealed by Speaker Mohamed Nasheed earlier in the day.

According to the report, Shaheem received a text message before the murder that suggested the senders would “love Afrasheem if he repents and announces on the media.” Shaheem forwarded the message to Afrasheem on September 12, 2012 but claimed he did not remember who the sender was when he was questioned by the commission.

Appearing on state TV on the night of his murder, Afrasheem apologised for “misunderstandings” over some of his views and Shaheem later denied forcing Afrasheem to offer a public apology. Text messages exchanged between the pair undermined Shaheem’s written statement, the report stated.