Nasheed's hearing scheduled for the 4th of next month

Former President Mohamed Nasheed’s trial regarding the illegal detention of Criminal Court judge Abdulla Mohamed has been scheduled for the 4th of April 2013.

An official from the Judiciary Media Unit said that the notification chit summoning Nasheed to court has now been sent. He said that the upcoming hearing will see confessions of witnesses presented by the prosecution.

Nasheed carries charges under Article 81 of the Penal Code, for the illegal detention of Criminal Court Judge Abdulla Mohamed for 22 days in Girifushi island through the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF), while acting as President and the foremost authority of the military.

A hearing for the trial was last held on the 5th of this month. The bench of judges presiding over the trial had announced then that the trial will be postponed by four weeks.

The judges bench made the decision after speaking with the Prosecutor General's Office (PG) in relation to a letter sent by Nasheed’s team to Hulhumale’ Magistrate Court requesting to postpone the trial even if it is by only four weeks, after considering the PG's statement that they had no objection to the request.