Justice Husnu Al Suood has resigned from his role as a Justice of the Supreme Court of the Maldives. This decision comes after the recent amendment to the Judicature Act was passed on February 26, which aims to reduce the number of justices from seven to five.
His resignation follows the suspension imposed by the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) on the same day, due to an ongoing criminal investigation by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
In a letter to President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, Justice Suood explained the importance of the amendment to the Judicature Act and mentioned the suspension of several Supreme Court justices. Although the legislative amendment to lower the Supreme Court’s number of justices from seven to five has been approved, President Dr. Muizzu has not yet ratified the bill. Alongside Justice Suood, Justices Dr. Azmiralda Zahir and Mahaz Ali Zahir have also been suspended by the JSC.
The composition of the Supreme Court has changed over time. Initially, after the current Constitution was ratified, the court consisted of five justices. This number was increased to seven with the establishment of the permanent Supreme Court in 2010, following an interim period.
During former President Abdulla Yameen’s administration in 2014, the bench was reduced back to five, and then increased again to seven during former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s administration.
Justice Suood began his tenure on the Supreme Court on December 8, 2019. Before this role, he was a member of the Presidential Commission on Deaths and Disappearances, which was formed during the previous administration.
