Center Enterprises’ MVR 168 million lawsuit against Male' City Council fails amid doubts over documents

Center Enterprises’ MVR 168 million lawsuit against the Male' City Council has been dismissed by the Civil Court.

The company had sought a total of MVR 168 million, including MVR 65.9 million for vehicles it claims to have supplied to the former Male' Municipality in 2007, and an additional MVR 102 million as penalty for non-payment.

In its ruling on Monday, the Civil Court noted that the Finance Ministry had informed the court that the amount stated in the alleged agreement exceeded the tender amount issued in 2007. The court further observed that the date claimed as the agreement-signing date was in fact the final day for bid submission, making it implausible that the Tender Board could have evaluated bids, awarded the tender, notified the municipality, and signed an agreement all on the same day.

The court said doubts had arisen regarding the authenticity of the agreement, and after reviewing the documents submitted, found that the alleged transaction could not be proven to the standard required in civil proceedings. The court also highlighted that although an invoice was issued in 2007, the company filed the case only in 2022 - 15 years later.

The Civil Court therefore ruled that payment of MVR 168 million cannot be ordered.

Meanwhile, a similar case filed by Center Enterprises against the Ministry of Health is currently before the Supreme Court. Although the High Court previously ruled that the ministry must pay for goods and services allegedly provided by the company, the state argues that no such agreement existed. A special audit conducted by the Auditor General’s Office also concluded that no such transaction had occurred with the Health Ministry.

Center Enterprises has filed multiple cases seeking payment for goods it claims to have supplied to various state agencies between 2006 and 2009, along with penalties for delayed payment.

In a report issued last month, the Audit Office stated that Center Enterprises had failed to prove the value of certain goods and materials it purportedly supplied to government offices and companies, and that the documents submitted by the company contained inaccuracies. The office conducted a forensic review of the documents and recommended a criminal investigation into the matter.

According to the business portal, the shareholders of Center Enterprises are Ahmed Jameez and Abdulla Arif.