Concrete pillar collapses inside Criminal Court

A concrete pillar at the Criminal Court partially collapsed last week, highlighting the safety hazard the rundown building poses.

Criminal Court’s spokesperson told Sun the pillar was found collapsed inside an administrative room Thursday.

He said the room had been vacant when the incident took place.

The Department of Judicial Administration (DJA) has been alerted to the situation, he said.

The four-story building that houses the Criminal Court has deep cracks in the walls and has water damage, leaving it in severe need of renovations.

Water damage has led to the cancellation of several hearings at the court.

While the building has been declared unsafe, DJA had been unsuccessful in efforts to find a new location to move the court.

Housing Development Corporation (HDC) later agreed to lease land from Hulhumale’ for a five-year period to construct a building to relocate the court. However, DJA said they were unable to afford the construction of a new building due to budgetary constraints.

The Criminal Court was originally run at the Justice Building. It was later relocated to the building next to Theemuge due to space constraints during former president Abdulla Yameen’s administration.