Gopal Sri Ram to appear for Zaid in case against AG
Former Federal Court judge to argue for judicial review of Apandi’s decision not to charge PM Najib Razak over 1MDB affair.
(FMT) – Former Federal Court judge Gopal Sri Ram will represent former minister Zaid Ibrahim in a judicial review application over the 1MDB affair at the High Court here next week.
Zaid and his lawyer Americk Sidhu confirmed with Malaysiakini that Sri Ram would be the lead counsel in the judicial review application filed by Zaid challenging Attorney-General Mohamed Apandi Ali’s decision not to charge Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.
Zaid had said the decision not to charge Najib over alleged financial abuses and movement of funds involving 1MDB by the attorney-general was unreasonable and constituted an improper exercise of discretion.
The court will hear, on Wednesday, the application by the Attorney-General’s Chambers’ to combine three cases brought against Apandi regarding his decision not to charge Najib, Malaysiakini reported.
The AG’s Chambers had sought to have the cases filed by Zaid and the Malaysian Bar challenging Apandi’s decision, and former Umno Batu Kawan vice-chief Khairuddin Abu Hassan’s application questioning Apandi’s appointment as AG, to be heard together. But not all parties are agreeable to this.
Zaid, in his application filed on Feb 2, had said the AG was under a constitutional duty to exercise the discretion conferred on him by the provisions of Article 145 (3) of the Federal Constitution with due consideration, reasonably, in the public interest and with a sense of justice.
Zaid said based on reports and statements published by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and other agencies investigating the financial affairs of 1MDB and SRC International, there was strong evidence of wrongdoing on the part of Najib.
There were indications that offences could have been committed under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 and the Financial Services Act 2013, and that these might also extend to criminal breach of trust and other offences under the Penal Code.
The Malaysian Bar, through its president Steven Thiru, had filed a similar application in March on the grounds that the attorney-general’s discretionary powers were not absolute or unfettered.
This was over Apandi’s decision to clear Najib who allegedly received deposits of RM42 million from state-owned SRC International and RM2.6 billion from an offshore account into his personal bank accounts, the report said.
The Bar is seeking to get Apandi disqualified from making further decisions relating to the case, and requesting it to be delegated to the solicitor-general, as the attorney-general had reportedly advised Najib on the case.
Khairuddin’s application seeks to challenge Apandi’s appointment as the AG. He also wants a royal commission of inquiry on the three investigations related to 1MDB.
The Bar is represented by senior lawyer Tommy Thomas while Mohd Haniff Khatri Abdulla will appear for Khairuddin.
