Supreme Court Unseats Hithadhoo North MP Sinan Over Unpaid Decreed Debt

In a landmark ruling that underscores the strict financial accountability required of public officials, the Supreme Court has unanimously declared that Hithadhoo North MP Mohamed Sinan has lost his parliamentary seat for failing to comply with a court judgment to repay a loan.

The verdict, delivered on Sunday, stems from a constitutional petition filed by Ghalib Saleem. The case centred on a MVR 2.5 million loan default, for which the Seenu Hithadhoo Court had ordered Sinan and another individual to repay the amount in monthly installments within a six-month period.

Presiding over a five-judge bench, Justice Aisha Shujune Muhammad methodically dismantled the defense's arguments. She stated that although Sinan claimed to be unaware of the lower court's judgment, documented evidence proved he had been properly notified. 

"There is no basis for Sinan's claim that he did not know that he was sentenced or that he did not receive the sentence," she declared, emphasising that ignorance of a court order is not a valid defense.

The court further rejected the argument that the original verdict was not final because it was delivered in absentia, noting that Sinan’s lawyer had withdrawn from the case only after the deadline for filing a defense had already expired.

A critical point of contention was the nature of the repayment. While Sinan eventually paid the entire sum in a lump sum during the third month, the Supreme Court upheld the lower court's ruling that the judgment explicitly required consistent monthly payments. The bench noted that the bank had rightly filed for enforcement after the first two monthly payments were missed, an action the Hithadhoo Court accepted, confirming that the monthly schedule was a mandatory condition of the judgment.

The ruling firmly establishes that failure to pay any amount mandated by a court constitutes a "decreed debt" under Article 73(c)(1) of the Constitution, which automatically disqualifies an individual from holding a seat in Parliament. The bench, which also included Justices Ali Rasheed Hussain, Dr Mohamed Ibrahim, Hussain Shaheed, and Mohamed Saleem, found that Sinan's failure to make the scheduled payments was a clear violation.

Justice Shujune concluded that the presence of a mortgage on the loan was irrelevant to the case, as the court's duty was solely to examine compliance with its order, not the methods available to fulfill it.

"The Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that Mohamed Sinan has been disqualified from the Member of Parliament," Justice Shujune said, invoking the constitutional mechanism that treats a decreed debt as a disqualification from office. 

The decision immediately vacates the Hithadhoo North seat, triggering the need for a by-election.