The Supreme Court has faced a power outage while preparing to hear arguments in the candidacy rejection case of opposition leader former President Abdulla Yameen.
Adhadhu reporters near the Supreme Court confirmed the power outage and an official from the State Electric Company Limited (STELCO) confirmed the reports as well.
"We are working to provide electricity," the official said.
Lawyers representing Yameen and the Attorney General's Office left the Supreme Court building following the power outage.
The hearing was scheduled to start at 2:30 pm today.
STELCO stated that the issue was caused due to overloading of a sub-station in the Supreme Court area. Electricity service has now resumed, the company confirmed.
Yameen is currently in jail after he was found guilty of accepting a USD 1.1 million bribe to lease Vaavu Aarah in the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) corruption scandal.
According to the constitution, if a presidential candidate has been convicted of a criminal offence and sentenced to a term of more than 12 months, three years must have elapsed since his release or pardon.
Despite the legal hurdles, Yameen submitted candidacy papers with his former Vice President Dr. Mohamed Jameel Ahmed as the running mate.
The Elections Commission (EC) legal team advised members that Yameen does not meet the constitutional criteria as no court has overturned his 11-year sentence.
The appeal of Yameen's conviction and sentence started at the High Court but only one hearing has been held since the Eid holidays. The case has stalled due to the leave of judges.
A constitutional case was also filed twice in the Supreme Court to ensure Yameen's electoral rights. Both times the court dismissed the case.
The constitutional provision on the eligibility of presidential candidates has been open to debate.
Some lawyers believe that a constitutional case could be filed at the Supreme Court to interpret the sentence referred to in the provision as the final judgment after the appeal process is completed.
The People's National Congress (PNC) has decided to field Male' Mayor Mohamed Muizzu if Yameen remains barred from contesting.
