Ex-arbitration centre head goes to Federal Court over legal immunity

N Sundra Rajoo (left) with lawyers Abdul Shukor Ahmad, K Shanmuga and Baljit Sidhu at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur at an earlier hearing.

PETALING JAYA: Former director of the Asian International Arbitration Centre (AIAC) N Sundra Rajoo has filed a leave application in the Federal Court to challenge a Court of Appeal decision that he is not entitled to immunity from prosecution for acts committed while in office.

His lawyer, K Shanmuga, said the application, together with 10 questions of law, was filed last week.

A civil appeal to the apex court is not automatic. An applicant needs to raise novel questions of law of public advantage or constitutional issues, as provided under Section 96 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964.

“We had also filed a certificate of urgency to hear the leave application. The Federal Court registry has now fixed case management for July 14,” Shanmuga told FMT.

On June 25, a three-member Court of Appeal allowed the government’s appeal against a High Court decision that Sundra enjoyed immunity from prosecution for acts committed while in office.

Judge Hanipah Farikullah, who chaired the bench, held that the right forum to determine Sundra’s immunity was the criminal court and not the civil court.

“He can defend himself properly in the proceedings as to whether the alleged act of criminal breach of trust (CBT) was done in his personal or official capacity as director at the time,” she said.

Sundra was previously slapped with three counts of CBT for allegedly misappropriating RM1.1 million in funds from AIAC.

The High Court last year allowed Sundra’s judicial review challenge against the attorney-general’s decision to prosecute him for the three CBT charges.

On Jan 22 this year, Sessions Court judge Azura Alwi struck out the CBT charges after ruling that she was bound by the High Court decision that he was entitled to immunity.

Sundra claimed that he was entitled to protection for acts and omissions in his official capacity as the AIAC was set up in 1978, following diplomatic correspondence between Malaysia and the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organisation. He served as head of AIAC from 2010 to 2018. - FMT