A send-off ceremony for the seventh batch of Maldivian judges selected to attend the Training and Capacity Building Programme at the National Judicial Academy (NJA), Bhopal, India, was held on 4 December. The event was attended by senior judicial and diplomatic figures, including the Chief Justice of the Maldives, representatives of the Judicial Service Commission, and the High Commissioner of India to the Maldives.
According to official posts by the Maldives Judicial Service Commission and the High Commission of India in Malé, the delegation will participate in a customised training programme at the NJA scheduled from 8–12 December 2025. The programme forms part of ongoing judicial cooperation between the two countries.
Forty-nine judicial officers — comprising judges from the High Court, superior courts and magistrates from across the atolls — are reported to be taking part in this seventh round of training. The delegation includes a number of female judges and judicial officers from island jurisdictions.
Background
The customised training programme at the NJA is implemented under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the National Judicial Academy of India and the Maldives Judicial Service Commission. The collaboration — which has seen successive batches of Maldivian judges attend NJA courses — focuses on judicial skills, court and case management, the role of technology in adjudication, and comparative perspectives on constitutional and judicial practice. The initial cooperation was formalised through an MoU signed in 2020.
The National Judicial Academy, established to provide education and training for judicial officers, runs a regular calendar of capacity-building programmes for both domestic and foreign judicial officers; its December 2025 schedule lists a specific session for Maldivian judicial officers from 8–12 December. NJA programmes typically combine academic lectures, interactive workshops and peer exchanges with judges from India and other jurisdictions.
Significance
Officials say the exchange advances judicial capacity in areas such as judicial behaviour and ethics, case-flow and court management, and the use of information and communication technology in judicial processes. For the Maldives, which operates a geographically dispersed court system across many inhabited islands, targeted training for magistrates and judges helps strengthen administration of justice at the local and national levels.
Reactions
Social-media posts from the High Commission of India in Malé and the Judicial Service Commission described the send-off as an example of close bilateral cooperation in capacity building and legal education. Dignitaries at the ceremony underscored the shared commitment to rule-of-law training and judicial excellence.
