The Parliament of the Maldives has approved the appointment of Ali Rasheed Hussain and Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim to the Supreme Court bench.
The president forwarded the nominations for the Supreme Court bench for the consideration of the parliament on August 19. Following approval of the nominations by the Parliamentary Committee on Judiciary, the nominations were sent for final approval from the parliament floor. The appointment of Ali Rasheed Hussain was approved with votes from 55 parliamentarians, while the appointment of Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim was approved with votes from 63 parliamentarians.
Ali Rasheed Hussain is currently serving as the Chief Judge at the Criminal Court of the Maldives. He is the first judge to issue a death sentence under the new constitution, which was ratified in 2008. He has presided over many high-profile criminal trials, including the money laundering trial of former President Abdulla Yameen.
Meanwhile, Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim is a renowned attorney who has worked in the legal sector for many years. He currently works at the law firm Premier Chambers.
As per the third amendment to the Judicature Act, which was ratified in July 2019, the Supreme Court must be composed of 7 judges. Currently, there are five judges at the apex court which includes Chief Justice Muthasim Adnan, Husnu Suood, Aisha Shujune Mohamed, Dr. Azmiralda Zahir and Mahaz Ali Zahir.