New Delhi: The People’s Majlis (Maldives Parliament) Sunday passed the Bill to amend the country’s General Elections Act. Through this, the country cannot hold elections during Ramadan.
The Bill to amend the General Elections Act was submitted by the Opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) on 24 January by Mohamed Shifau, MDP MP from Ihavandhoo constituency.
Earlier, the Elections Commission of Maldives had scheduled the parliamentary elections for 17 March, which falls within the first week of Ramadan. The decision had sparked concern about a possible low voter turnout.
The amendment to Article 43 states that no elections would be held in the Muslim country during the holy month of Ramadan. If the date of the election coincides with the day of Ramadan, the election shall be held 10 days after the end of Ramadan, according to Maldivian news outlet Mihaaru.
The ad hoc committee, which was formed to study the amendment, also met the Maldives Elections Commission and decided to postpone the polls until after Ramadan, reported Mihaaru.
The bill was passed Sunday with a majority vote of 46-3, however, the election date has not been announced yet, reported sun.mv. Meanwhile, the term of the current parliamentary assembly will end on 28 May.
In a recent post on X, Ismail Habeeb, the vice-chairperson of the Maldives EC said that till now, only 24 candidates have filed their candidacy for the parliamentary elections, the window for which will close Wednesday.
Earlier, speaking on the postponement of the elections, Habeeb reportedly said that there were concerns that the constitutional deadline would be exceeded if the polls were postponed for another 10 days after Ramadan. The Constitution requires elections to be held 30 days before the expiry of the term of the current members of Parliament, he added.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)
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