Parliament of Maldives has put a hold on the no-confidence motion against Minister of Defence Mariya Ahmed Didi.
Concluding the parliament sitting on March 6, Parliament Speaker Qasim Ibrahim announced the decision to put a hold on the no-confidence motion against the defence minister. The speaker said, as mentioned by a 2017 Supreme Court order, there are no certain regulations to follow in regard to no-confidence motions. He said the motion against Minister Mariya will be put on agenda once the regulations are passed.
The no-confidence motion against Mariya was submitted to parliament with signatures of 14 parliamentarians representing the main opposition party, Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), in the wake of an interview she gave to an Indian media channel. According to parliament regulation, a no-confidence motion can be submitted with at least signatures of 10 members, although the motion would be passed with votes of 43 parliamentarians.
The Supreme Court declared in 2017 that a no confidence vote can be taken only with probable cause and even if such a motion is passed, the Supreme Court would have the last word on the matter.