The Bank of Maldives (BML) has filed a High Court appeal contending that the Civil Court cannot hear former President Abdulla Yameen's lawsuit over the bank's refusal to deposit USD 1 million to his account after the expiry of an escrow agreement with the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
In the lawsuit filed on behalf of Yameen, the Civil Court was asked to declare that the bank had withheld the funds in breach of the escrow agreement. Along with the USD 1 million, the lawsuit also sought fair compensation to Yameen in the amount that he was estimated to have earned if the money had been kept in an investment account.
But BML objected to the Civil Court on the grounds the bank was not a party to the dispute. The funds had been deposited upon request by the ACC for investigative purposes to a BML current account opened under the commission's name, the bank noted. Therefore, the lawsuit should have been filed solely against the ACC, the bank argued.
However, the Civil Court rejected the bank's motion for dismissal and ruled that it had the jurisdiction to hear the case. The ruling was made on February 20.
The High Court's registry shows that the ruling was appealed last Wednesday. The High Court has not made a decision yet on accepting the appeal.
Yameen was charged after the investigation of two transactions in the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) corruption scandal that occurred during his administration. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison over alleged corruption in the leasing of Vaavu Aarah.
The guilty verdict was appealed and the High Court is due to deliver a judgment. Yameen had also been charged over alleged corruption in the leasing of Raa Fuggiri island. The case is ongoing at the lower court but a hearing has not taken place recently due to space constraints at the Criminal court.
