MDP MP Dr. Ahmed Shamheed Pledges to Personally Settle Duplex Pvt Ltd Loan After Civil Court Judgment

Hulhumalé South constituency MDP member Dr. Ahmed Shamheed has said he will personally settle the loan taken by a company in which he holds shares, in accordance with the Civil Court's judgment ordering payment of the money. The Civil Court on Tuesday ordered five people, including Shamheed, who provided a guarantee for the loan, to pay the money in the case concerning the failure to make regular payments on a USD 500,000 "Sale and Leaseback Facility" issued by Islamic Bank (MIB) to "Duplex Private Limited". In a statement issued today in connection with the judgment, Shamheed said the loan was taken for the personal use of some of the company's shareholders. He said he gave the guarantee because otherwise the loan could not have been arranged. He said that from the point he became aware that the company was not making payments on the loan, he repeatedly informed the parties responsible for running the company and its financial affairs to make the payments, but that this was not done. "But because those parties did not pay the money, I have been paying the money in my personal capacity from that point until today," said Shamheed, who is also contesting for the MDP presidential ticket in the 2028 presidential election. Shamheed alleged in his statement that the matter is now being turned into a political issue in order to damage his reputation. He said the people who were in charge of running the company created with former friends have now decided to support a candidate who is politically rival to him. But Shamheed said political rivalry is not a reason to damage reputation by politicising such matters that involve personal interests. According to the Economic Ministry's business portal, Ahmed Aslam is a Managing Director of Duplex company. In addition to Aslam and Shamheed, the shareholders of the company are Ahmed Saeed, Mohamed Hamdhan Bagir and Mohamed Fiyaz. Shamheed's statement further said that even when the matter was submitted to court, the parties running the company did not pay any attention to it and did not answer to the court. He also said that he was informed that the case was decided and the judgment given without him being summoned to court, and that this was done via email. "This loan was not taken for my benefit, but I assure the beloved people of the constituency that, with the help of Almighty Allah, I will pay and settle this debt legally imposed on me in accordance with the court's judgment," Shamheed's statement said.