Supreme Court of the Maldives has upheld the ruling by lower courts to hand back the operations of Kaadedhdhoo Airport to Villa Air Private Limited.
Villa Air, owned by Jumhooree Party (JP)’s Leader Qasim Ibrahim, filed a lawsuit against the state after the administration of former President Abdulla Yameen terminated the agreement signed with the company in 2013 to operate Kaadedhdhoo Airport for a duration of 50 years. The former administration had claimed that Villa Air was breaching the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)’s standards and regulations in operating the airport.
Villa Air filed the lawsuit at the Civil Court of the Maldives, which ruled that the agreement was terminated unlawfully and ordered the state to hand back the operations of the airport to Villa Air. The state appealed the ruling at the High Court of the Maldives, which also ruled in favour of Villa Air.
The ruling by the High Court was appealed at the Supreme Court of the Maldives for the final ruling. Upon appeal, the apex court upheld the ruling by the lower courts, stating the claims by the government that the airport was being operated in violation of CAA standards could not be proven. As such, the court stated the supporting documents submitted by the state were prepared by Maldivian, a direct competitor of Villa Air, which would have vested interest in the case. The court also noted Maldivian’s flights have been landing at the airport even after the state claimed that the runway of the airport does not fit the CAA standards.
Since the termination of the agreement signed with Villa Air, Kaadedhdhoo Airport has been operated under Regional Airports Company Limited.