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The Maldives parliament has adopted a 'decree' that if passed as a resolution could lead to the prosecution of former president Mohamed Nasheed for allegedly violating the constitution.
The decree was proposed by Member of Parliament Abdulla Jabir of the Jumhooree Party and it was accepted by a vote of 39 MP's from among the 66 present.
A heated debate followed in the 'Majlis' over how to select a seven-member parliamentary committee to study the decree.
An MP in the Maldivian parliament can submit a decree on the floor of the house which when approved by the majority, allows for a talk or discussion and a move to study it.
Following its perusal and discussion at a parliamentary select committee, it is returned to the parliament for a vote, and if approved it becomes a resolution.
A parliamentary sub-committee will now study the decree regarding Nasheed, and if the Parliament endorses it as a resolution it may end up at the supreme court.
Nasheed might then be tried for alleged violations of the constitution.
Some cases have already been filed against Nasheed with the Prosecutor General by Human Rights Commission of Maldives and the Maldives Police Service regarding the wrongful arrest of a judge during his tenure as president.
The allegations are being investigated before the prosecutor general gives a green light. If he is tried and convicted, Nasheed will be barred from contesting the presidential election.
Home Minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed has already claimed that Nasheed will be sent behind bars for life for alleged violations committed during his term in office.