Abdulla Hameed (c.1939 - 18 August 2015) was a
Maldivian politician. He was the Minister of Atolls during the administration of his brother
Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. Hameed was the Speaker of the
Majlis from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 2004. He was a recipient of the Order of Distinguished Rule of Izzuddeen.
1982 speech
On 26 July 1982, at a celebration of Maldivian Independence Day, Hameed gave a public speech in which he claimed that
Minicoy Island
Minicoy, locally known as Maliku (), is an island in Lakshadweep, India. Along with Viringili, it is on ''Maliku atoll'', the southernmost atoll of Lakshadweep archipelago. Administratively, it is a census town in the Indian union territory o ...
was part of the Maldives.
[Ramesh Trivedi (2007). ''India's Relations with her Neighbours'' (Isha Books, ) p. 177.] Hameed was the Minister of Atolls at the time and his speech was interpreted as an official claim over the island. The speech caused a minor diplomatic crisis between India and the Maldives, because the two countries had agreed to a
maritime boundary treaty whereby Minicoy was placed on the Indian side of the boundary. President Gayoom hurriedly clarified that Hameed's speech was intended to highlight the linguistic, cultural, and religious ties between the Maldives and Minicoy and that the Maldives was not intending to make a political claim over the atoll.
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Sought on corruption charges
In September 2011, the Criminal Court of the Maldives ordered the police to summon Hameed to the Maldives to face charges of corruption stemming from his time in public office.[Ahmed Naish]
"Criminal Court orders police to summon former Atolls Minister Abdulla Hameed"
, ''Minivan News'', 2011-09-13 The order was a follow-up to the April 2011 request of the Court for the police to locate Hameed, who as of 2011 was believed to reside in Sri Lanka.
Death
Hameed died on 18 August 2015 in Bangalore
Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...
while receiving treatment for heart failure. He was given a state funeral. The national flag was flown on half mast for three days following his death.
References
External links
Article
in ''Maldeeb'' magazine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hameed, Abdulla
1939 births
2015 deaths
Government ministers of the Maldives
Speakers of the People's Majlis
Maldivian expatriates in Sri Lanka