President has been advised to ratify the two bills: Azima

Attorney General Aishath Azima Shakoor has said today that she had advised the president to ratify the bill on political parties and the bill on parliament privileges and powers.

The bills have been passed by the parliament without any amendment after they were returned by the president for reconsideration; and thus must now be assented to by the president.

While answering the questions of the Committee on Oversight of the Government after she was summoned to an emergency meeting of the committee, Azima said that she advised the president to ratify the bills during the discussions held regarding the ratification of the two bills.

She said that she was not informed why the bills had not been ratified thus far, and refused to further comment on the issue.

“I don’t know the reason for the delay, so I cannot pass any judgements. A decision cannot be made on the matter,” she said.

Azima said that she filed a case to Supreme Court regarding an article of the bill before the bill was ratified, in consideration of the damage that would be caused to small parties as a result of their dissolution once the bill is ratified. She said that as the attorney general, it was her responsibility to take that action.

“It’s not a problem to take a case in the interest of the state to court. The interest of the state I mention here is not necessarily the interest of the government. It’s not a problem, if the efforts are about upholding the rule of law,” she said.

Meanwhile, parties represented in the parliament have said that the attorney general cannot challenge a bill in Supreme Court before it is ratified.

The Government Oversight Committee has notified the attorney general to withdraw the case filed to Supreme Court. Azima has not yet commented on this requested.

Political parties represented in the parliament earlier called on the president to ratify and publish the bill on political parties and the bill on parliament privileges and powers in the government gazette today.