The Supreme Court has ruled that there is no legal basis to suspend the public referendum on holding presidential and parliamentary elections on the same day, allowing the vote scheduled for Saturday to proceed.

The case was filed by lawyer Ibrahim Shiyam and Aik Ahmed Easa, who challenged the constitutionality of the referendum question related to the proposed eighth amendment to the Constitution, arguing that the wording of the question was unlawful.

During the hearing, the Attorney General’s Office submitted that the Constitution does not prescribe how a referendum question should be framed, with State Attorney Shahudh Mohamed Waheed stating that Article 262 sets out procedural requirements for ratifying constitutional amendments but does not govern the wording of questions put to a public vote, adding that the issue raised was procedural rather than constitutional in nature.

The State further argued that the Constitution requires public opinion to be sought where necessary, but does not specify whether this should be done through a question or any particular format, noting that the framing of a referendum question falls within the discretionary powers of the President, and that a constitutional breach would only arise if a required vote is not held or its outcome is not respected.

Presiding over the case, Chief Justice Uz Abdul Ghanee Mohamed said the Constitution and relevant laws do not set a specific method for formulating referendum questions, concluding that there were no grounds to halt the vote, with the bench comprising Justices Ali Rasheed and Dr Mohamed Ibrahim, alongside Justices Uz Hussain Shaheedh and Uz Abdulla Hameed.

The ruling follows earlier attempts to block the referendum through the Civil Court and High Court, which were not accepted, as the country prepares to vote on the proposed constitutional amendment alongside the Local Council and Women’s Development Committee elections on 4 April.