Gov't to challenge Anwar's bid to set aside sodomy conviction

The government will make an application to strike out jailed former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's latest bid to set aside his sodomy conviction and sentence.

His lawyer Latheefa Koya said this was informed by senior federal counsel Tengku Intan Soraya Tengku Ismail who appeared for the government during a case management at the Kuala Lumpur High Court today.

Anwar's application was made on the grounds that the government relied on perjured evidence. The government has yet to file its defence.

"They have informed us they will be filing the striking-out application. The court has instructed that the application must be filed before the next case management on May 18," Latheefa said after both parties appeared before deputy registrar Ery Shariman Nor Ariffin.

However, no grounds were given on the reasons to set aside Anwar's application.

The 69-year-old politician filed his application on April 17 naming the government as the defendant.

In his statement of claim, Anwar alleged that the government relied on fabricated evidence in the form of a DNA sample which he claimed was used to support evidence from complainant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

He further suggested that the government had intention to injure him by placing Saiful as the truthful witness and that the evidence against him was perjured.

Anwar further contended that the government through its agents, Saiful and other individuals known to the government, had acted concertedly to place Saiful as a truthful complainant and produced him (Saiful) in the trial and relied on his false testimony to injure him and his reputation.- Mkini