Adhadhu can confirm that the three Supreme Court justices were suspended based on a "perplexing" letter from the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) about a criminal investigation to frame them without any further information on the alleged investigation.
The investigation is proceeding in great secrecy without any disclosure. Repeated calls and text messages by Adhadhu journalists to get official information have been unsuccessful.
But multiple credible sources with information on the matter said the JSC, under the full control of President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, suspended the justices to stop the constitutional case on MP disqualification.
Sources confirmed that the ACC letter to JSC only mentions an "ongoing criminal investigation" against the justices.
"There are no details in the letter sent by ACC. It only says a criminal investigation is ongoing. There is no mention of the accusations or any relevant documents," a source said.
Adhadhu understands that the ACC itself does not know what the case is or its seriousness. The case registration slip is the only document in the investigation.
According to sources, heated exchanges took place during the JSC meeting on Sunday since they did not know the accusations.
ACC previously referred cases against judges to the JSC without initiating investigations. It begins investigations when the JSC concludes disciplinary proceedings and refers the cases back to the ACC.
This means the ACC acted against the general rules and procedures followed in the past.
ACC President Adam Shamil has refused to comment. The anti-corruption watchdog has not worked adequately since he took over and is now attacking the country's judiciary under political influence.
JSC suspended justices Husnu Suood, Dr. Azmiralda Zahir and Mahaz Ali Zahir upon receiving the ACC letter.
JSC can no longer conduct disciplinary proceedings against Suood since he resigned in protest of the intimidation of judges and influence on the constitutional case.
This is the first time in recent history that the ACC has taken action so quickly in an investigation related to the judiciary.
The ACC usually does not take any action when cases are registered. Its statistics prove that the commission does not put half the effort to prevent corruption in the Maldives.
