MDP denied injunction to halt eviction from main party centre

Civil Court, on Tuesday, denied Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) an injunction to suspend the party’s eviction from its main party center, the MDP Haruge, located near the Henveiru Artificial Beach.

MDP Haruge is located on a land owned by Shafiyya Zubair, one of the party’s former senior activists. During the great divide of the party, Shafiyya sided with MDP’s leader, Parliament Speaker Mohamed Nasheed.

The party received notice from the landowner to vacate the premises last April.

MDP, in the claim for an injunction, said Shafiyya had verbally agreed to let MDP continue their political activities at the party centre till the end of the upcoming presidential election. The court documents submitted by MDP read that the agreement was reached during an exchange held over the phone.

In light of this, MDP requested an injunction in her absentia, citing the landowner had stated she would repossess the land and damage property owned by party at the premise. The claim further stated that non-issuance of an injunction can infringe the constitutional rights of the party and may lead to the landowner viewing it as an indication to infringe the party’s rights.

Civil Court Judge Hassan Faheem, who reviewed the case, cited the possibility of an injunction being issued over a verbal agreement being an obstruction to reaching a decision in the actual claim. He also said there were no legal grounds to issue an injunction due to the lack of a legally binding agreement between the parties.

MDP has been denied the injunction after Nasheed’s close aides involved in the formation of ‘The Democrats’, a new political party, seized MDP's main party centre to establish their own party centre at the premise.