Supreme Court case seeks to block Ras Malé agreement with Eagle Hills

A constitutional case has been filed at the Supreme Court seeking to halt an agreement to allocate more than 500 hectares of Ras Malé to UAE-based Eagle Hills for 99 years, alleging that the arrangement violates the Constitution.

The case was filed on Monday by lawyer and former Kendhoo MP Ali Hussain, amid debate over the government's agreement with Eagle Hills for the Maldives Waterfront and Marina development.

In a statement announcing the filing, Ali said the case challenges the legal validity of the Commercial Terms Agreement signed last week between the Ministry of Construction and Infrastructure and Eagle Hills.

Eagle Hills announced on 21 September that it had signed a commercial terms agreement with the government for the development of Maldives Waterfront and Marina in the Ras Malé area. The company said the agreement establishes the shared vision and principal commercial terms for the project, with detailed terms to be developed as it progresses.

Ali said the government had declined to disclose the full details and provisions of the agreement.

However, he said available information indicated that more than 500 hectares of reclaimed land in Ras Malé would be allocated to Eagle Hills for 99 years.

According to Ali's statement, the arrangement would provide Eagle Hills with interests over the land without requiring it to pay an acquisition cost or rent. He also claimed that the company would have the authority to lease developments on the land to third parties.

Ali based his constitutional challenge partly on Article 250 of the Constitution, which states that any transfer, sale, lease, release, mortgage or other disposal of state-owned property or assets must be carried out in accordance with law. The text of the Constitution confirms this requirement.

His case argues that there is no legal framework in the Maldives authorising state property to be leased to a foreign party for a single 99-year term in the manner contemplated by the agreement.

Ali therefore contends that granting such leasehold rights without legal authority would directly contravene Article 250 of the Constitution.

The case also raises questions over provisions that Ali said would allow Eagle Hills to create continuing rights for third parties over the land.

Ali has asked the Supreme Court to declare that the agreement contravenes Articles 250 and 251 of the Constitution and is therefore invalid.

He has also sought an interim order suspending implementation of the agreement until the Supreme Court reaches a decision in the case. According to his statement, the interim order is intended to prevent rights or interests over the land from being created for third parties while the constitutional challenge remains pending.

Article 250 provides that transactions involving state property must be conducted in accordance with law. Ali has previously brought constitutional litigation before the Supreme Court, including a challenge concerning an amendment to Article 73 of the Constitution, which the court decided in April this year.

The Eagle Hills development is planned for the urban area of Ras Malé. According to the developer, it will include hotels and resorts, residences, a marina, waterfront promenades, restaurants, retail, leisure, wellness and other facilities. Eagle Hills says properties within the development will be offered under a leasehold framework of up to 99 years, with transfers and inheritance subject to government approval and registration.

The project has drawn political scrutiny since the commercial terms agreement was signed, including calls for the government to disclose the agreement and clarify the terms governing the land.

The government has maintained that the underlying land will remain state property and that the arrangement does not amount to the sale of Maldivian land to foreigners.