The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has cleared Supreme Court Justice Mahaz Ali Zahir of wrongdoing after investigating an ethics complaint over an alleged gift.
Mahaz was alleged to have accepted a feast from a supporter of a claimant as a celebratory gift for ruling in favour of an appeal.
The allegation referred to a lunch held at the Supreme Court after a judgment that freed former President Abdulla Yameen from a jail sentence. Mahaz presided over Yameen's appeal.
At a meeting held this afternoon, the JSC decided there was insufficient evidence to prove an ethical violation, Adhadhu has learned.
The commission said previously in a statement about the investigation that the Supreme Court refused to cooperate after letters were sent repeatedly seeking to clarify information in relation to the complaint.
"Efforts to seek details about how the meal was arranged and how it was paid for were deliberately ignored," the JSC said at the time.
In a message sent to a social media group of judges, Justice Mahaz denied violating ethical standards and assured cooperation with the JSC investigation.
"There is nothing that I would do and no favor I would ask of anyone to remain as a judge or to defend my position," Mahaz wrote.
