HC order stay on Yameen's Fuggiri trial
The state said that it had no objection to the issuance of the order sought by Yameen.
By
Fathmath Ahmed Shareef
High Court on Thursday ordered a stay on the trial of former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom until a decision is taken on the appeal filed by his defence against the Criminal Court's decision to reject his pre-trial submissions in the R. Fuggiri case.
Yameen had filed an appeal in the High Court against the Criminal Court's decision to reject the pre-trial submissions filed by his defence in the Fuggiri case. Yameen had sought a stay order on the trial in the Fuggiri case until the appeal case is concluded in the High Court.
In a separate interim order, the High Court ordered that the trial be stayed till the High Court decides on the appeal against the pre-trial submission.
During Tuesday's High Court hearing before the order was issued, the state's opinion on Yameen's request for an injunction was sought.
On the same day, the state pointed out that the common practice in cases where the decision of pre-trial submissions can be challenged is to stay the proceedings till the high court decides.
The state said that it had no objection to the issuance of the order sought by Yameen.
Details of Fuggiri appeal
Yameen's appeal was based on three points:
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Criminal Court Judge Ali Nadeem rejected Yameen's plea to reject some evidence: he did not explain how the decision was reached
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Yameen’s plea to reject former MMPRC Managing Director Abdulla Ziyath and former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb’s testimony was rejected in violation of the law and previous rulings
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Yameen's request to disclose certain documents was rejected without any basis
In his appeal to the High Court, Yameen had sought a stay on the lower court's trial until the high court decides on his appeal:
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The High Court may accept the lower court's request to disclose the same to the court if there are any documents contained in the investigation conducted by the ACC regarding the lease of Fuggiri
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Quashing the decision between President’s Office and tourism ministry between November 17, 2013 and October 2015, and between the President's Office and MMPRC regarding the disclosure of copies of all the letters exchanged in connection with the development of tourist resorts
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To direct the trial court to review the evidence list under the existing Evidence Act and allow them to re-submit their pre-trial submissions
