AG rejects Isham’s plea to withdraw contempt action

 

Isham Jalil is facing contempt of court proceedings concerning statements he allegedly made during an interview titled “Townhall for justice: Keadilan sebenarnya untuk siapa” posted on Facebook.

KUALA LUMPUR: Former Umno Supreme Council member Isham Jalil’s plea for the withdrawal of contempt of court proceedings brought against him over comments made concerning former prime minister Najib Razak’s 1MDB-related cases has been declined.

“The Attorney-General has rejected representations made by Hisham,” deputy public prosecutor Mustapha Kunyalam told Justice Noorin Badaruddin during case management today.

Noorin has now ordered Isham to reply to the AG’s affidavit by July 31.

Parties are to file their respective written submissions by Oct 1, with the judge scheduled to hear oral submissions on Oct 14.

Deputy public prosecutors Ahmad Akram Gharib and Deepa Nair Thevaharan also represented the AG, while Azhar Azizan Harun, Jamie Wong and Kelvesh Deshenran acted for Isham.

On April 23, Akram said lawyers appearing for Isham had sent representations to the AG in a bid to bring the matter to a close.

He said Isham has offered to make an unreserved apology for his remarks to avoid the contempt proceedings being heard.

On March 4, Noorin allowed the AG leave to initiate the contempt proceedings, having been satisfied that a prima facie case had been established against Isham.

Filed on Dec 28 last year, the application concerned statements Isham allegedly made during an interview titled “Townhall for justice: Keadilan sebenarnya untuk siapa”.

The interview was published on Facebook on Sept 30, 2023 via an account known as Malaya Post.

In an affidavit filed in support of the leave application, Mustaffa claimed that Isham had during the interview commented on Najib’s 1MDB and SRC International trials, and the Federal Court’s conduct of the final appeal in the latter case.

Isham is also alleged to have accused Collin Lawrence Sequerah and Justice Nazlan Ghazali, who presided over the 1MDB and SRC International trials, respectively, of bias. He allegedly said the judges ought to have withdrawn from hearing the cases.

Both judges now sit in the Court of Appeal.

According to Mustaffa, Isham also claimed that the five apex court judges, led by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, who heard Najib’s final appeal in the SRC International case, had judged the case unfairly.

The affidavit claimed Isham’s statements could undermine the public’s confidence in the judiciary and amounted to interference with the administration of justice. - FMT