Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has decided to halt the work at the building of the Criminal Court of the Maldives due to its instability.
The Criminal Court is operating at the former State Trading Organisation (STO) building near the local market in Male’ City. The Criminal Court was moved from the Justice Building to the current building in 2015 and the court personnel has since made complaints regarding the small size of the rooms in the building.
Additionally, the old building has decayed to the point where it shows signs of wear and tear. Incidents have also occurred in which rainwater had leaked inside rooms or some parts of the building fell off, causing some hearings to be cancelled.
JSC stated that safety measures have been taken while the commission initiates action to relocate the Criminal Court to a temporary building. As such, employees have been instructed to no longer use the current building and to continue their work at the extension building. They have also been advised to hold hearings online and implement a work-from-home policy and switch to shift duties.