Supreme Court appeal hearings in Yameen's Fuggiri graft conclude
A decision on the matter will be taken by Monday next week, the judge said.
By
Mohamed Muzayyin Nazim
Supreme Court on Monday concluded hearings in an appeal filed by former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom over the Criminal Court's ruling to dismiss pre-trial submissions made by the defence in the trial over charges of money laundering and bribery in connection with the alleged irregularities in the leasing of R. Fuggiri through MMPRC.
The Criminal Court has already begun the trial of charges against Yameen and others in connection with the alleged siphoning off state funds.
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Yameen challenged the Criminal Court's ruling to dismiss the pre-trial submissions at the High Court, which also backed the lower court ruling
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Yameen then approached the Supreme Court
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In addition to Yameen, alleged co-conspirator Ahmed Krik Riza also filed an appeal in the Supreme Court
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Hearings in the Supreme Court began on Sunday
The hearing on Sunday included the submission of appeals raised by Yameen and the state's response to them. Monday’s hearing included the arguments on behalf of Krik Riza and the state's response to them.
During Sunday’s hearing, Yameen and Krik Riza had sought a stay order on the Criminal Court trial until the Supreme Court decides on the appeal case. The three-judge bench granted the stay order until next Monday.
Key points that Yameen made during Sunday’s hearing:
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To set aside the High Court's judgement in the first appeal case
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Dismiss state witnesses, former Vice President Ahmed Adheeb and former MMPRC Managing Director Abdulla Ziyath
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To direct the trial court to reconsider its decision on individual evidence
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To provide documents available with the state agencies regarding the case and share the log of the investigation
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Under the newly enacted Evidence Act, the trial court may be allowed to re-submit pre-trial submissions
The state is of the view that there is no place to overturn the High Court judgement. The prosecution argued that the testimonies of Adheeb and Ziyath were valid. The state is also opposed to re-submission of evidence under the Evidence Act.
During Monday’s hearing, Krik Riza's counsel sought:
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To declare that the charge sheet in the case has to be framed under the new law
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The trial court allowed the accused to speak on the argumentthat the testimony of Adheeb and Ziyath had been compromised
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To declare that recording of audio and video of statements made by Adheeb and Ziyath during the investigation is legally binding
After hearing arguments from all sides during the hearing, which lasted for over four hours, Justice Husnu Suood, who was presiding over the bench, announced that it is the last hearing and the next course of action will be the verdict. A decision on the matter will be taken by Monday next week, he said.
Apart from Husnu Suood, the other two judges on the bench are:
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Justice Aisha Shujoon
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Justice Dr Mohamed Ibrahim
