State requests to declare void three articles of the Parliament Privileges Act

The State has requested the Supreme Court to declare void three articles of the Parliament Privileges and Powers Act.

At the trial held today, Deputy State Attorney of the Attorney General’s Office Ushama Moosa requested the Supreme Court to declare void Article 11 (a), Article 16 and Article 18 (b) of the Parliament Privileges and Powers Act, as these articles violate the Constitution.

Article 11 (a) states that MPs shall not be summoned to court or other institutions in a manner that obstructs them from attending parliament sessions, committee meetings or other official duties.

Ushama said that this article could result in difficulties for relevant institutions when they are required to summon MPs, which could result in obstructions for the institutions in carrying out their responsibilities.

Article 16 states that if an MP is arrested for the investigation of a criminal offence, or arrested for a period of less than one year after being convicted of a criminal offence, the MP must be allowed to attend parliament sittings and committee meetings.

Ushama highlighted that according to this article, an MP must be allowed to attend parliament sittings and committee meetings during the investigation of a criminal offence in which he is a suspect, which would give him the opportunity to make phone calls and meet with people while in the parliament premises, which could in turn obstruct the investigation.

Article 18 (b) states that any person who does not answer questions after being summoned by a parliament committee would be deemed to have disobeyed the orders of the parliament, and shall be subjected to a fine of between MVR 1,000 and MVR 3,000 or imprisonment for six months.

Ushama said that this article obstructs the freedom of press guaranteed in the Constitution, and noted that there is no penalty for refusing to provide information after being summoned by institutions such as the Anti-Corruption Commission and the police.

No announcements were made before the Chief Justice concluded today’s session of the trial.