Ivan Grech Mintoff has resigned from the ABBA, but will remain on the ballot sheets. 

He announced his departure from the rightwing religious political party during an MEP election debate organised by the Broadcasting Authority on Tuesday.

Elaborating on his decision, he said that this came after the party's secretary general, Simon Elmer, tried to "sabotage" him by publically chastising him for citing his role as ABBA leader in a judicial protest filed against the Broadcasting Authority.

He said that Elmer refused to hold executive meetings and started a campaign intended to tarnish his reputation, he said. 

As election ballot papers have already been printed, Grech Mintoff, said he will still appear listed under ABBA, but appealed to the public to think of him as an independent candidate. 

“If Simon Elmer is so determined to cause me harm, this shouldn’t be reflected in the party. No one is above the law, and so that’s why my lawyers will file a libel case against Elmer so he is held responsible for his actions in front of the law,” he said. 

Grech Mintoff recently made headlines for throwing eggs as a form of political protest, interrupting Prime Minister Robert Abela on stage in March and more recently during a university debate, where he also threw eggs during his allotted speaking time. 

Last month, while attempting to enter another BA debate, Grech Mintoff was barred from bringing a carton of eggs into the venue, with BA CEO Joanna Spiteri blocking his entry to the studio. 

Following this incident, he filed a judicial protest claiming that the incident had violated his right to peaceful protest. 

However, Elmer claimed this caused a stir within Grech Mintoff’s own party, which released a statement distancing itself from the legal action, saying that it had nothing to do with it. 

The party said that this had been done only in his personal capacity.