Easha served police summons over ‘Aisha’ documentary

Aishath Easha Ashraf, a former President’s Office staffer, has been told to present herself to the police for questioning on Tuesday night in the investigation into ‘Aisha’, a documentary published by news outlet Adhadhu.

The documentary, published on March 28, featured an anonymized interview with a woman who made serious allegations against President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu.

Easha has been told to present herself to the police station in Hulhumale’ Phase I at 09:00 pm Tuesday for questioning in the case.

 According to the summons, the police suspect her of involvement in a documentary involving Gazf or false allegations of adultery against President Muizzu.

Easha is being summoned so the investigators can question her and take her statement. The police estimate it will take two hours and 59 minutes.

Easha has hired former prosecutor general Hussain Shameem as her legal counsel.

Easha, along with Adhadhu’s CEO and chief editor Hussain Fiyaz Moosa, and managing editor Hassan Mohamed have all been placed under travel ban orders as police investigate the case, citing intelligence reports suggesting they were attempting to flee the country.

Fiyaz and Hassan were questioned by police last week but chose to protect their source and exercise their right to remain silent.

The police conducted an unprecedented raid on the office of the news outlet on April 27, during which they seized multiple electronic devices, including laptops and storage devices.

The raid came hours after a journalist from ‘Adhadhu’ questioned President Muizzu regarding the allegations made in the documentary. He dismissed the allegations as “blatant lies”, and said he would ask relevant authorities to take action against all involved in making the documentary.

The crackdown on Adhadhu sparked condemnation from the Maldives Journalists Association (MJA), which accused the government of crossing a clear red line, and demanded an immediate end to the intimidation of journalists and the suppression of press freedom.

The case has also raised concerns within the international community regarding the state of press freedom in the Maldives.