KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has appeared in court again to call for his immediate release, this time on grounds that he was denied a fair trial.
Today, in an originating summons against the government, Anwar, for the second time, is seeking to set aside his conviction and imprisonment for sodomising his former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, 31, nine years ago.
The former opposition leader had through his lawyer N. Surendran filed a certificate of urgency to get the earliest possible date for hearing of the application.
“Anwar is filing an application in order to set aside and quash the judgment of the Court of Appeal in March 2104 and also to set aside the affirmation of the Federal Court saying that he was denied the right to a fair trial,” he said.
The legal action arose from an allegation that lawyer Tan Sri Dr Muhammad Shaffee Abdullah, who was the lead prosecutor in his sodomy appeal, was paid a sum of RM9.5 million.
In the document, Anwar claims that Shafee did not discharge his duty fairly as a prosecutor and that he had a direct financial interest in the matter.
Anwar alleged that Shafee had been paid an enormous amount by a person interested in the outcome of the case, namely Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
He also claims that the statement by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri in Parliament has given the public the impression that Shafee was paid a mere RM1,000 to conduct the prosecution against him at the appellate court stage.
“The reason (for the application) is because of the existence of the allegation that RM9.5 million has been paid to the prosecutor (Shafee).
“We have filed this application by way of certificate of urgency as we want the earliest date following this new development (on the RM9.5 million),” Surendran said at the KL Courts Complex lobby after filing the application.
On April 17, Anwar, had filed an application for his immediate release on grounds that his sodomy conviction was obtained through perjured evidence and testimony.
In the statement of claim, he is seeking for an order that the conviction was null and void.
On March 27, 2014, Anwar, 61, and incarcerated at the Sungai Buloh Prison, was convicted by the Court of Appeal of committing unnatural carnal intercourse against Saiful at Unit 11-5-1 of Desa Damansara Condominium in Jalan Setiakasih, Bukit Damansara here between 3.10pm and 4.30pm on June 26, 2008.
He is currently serving a five-year jail term after losing his appeal at the Federal Court on Feb 10, 2015, to set aside his conviction on the charge.
The Federal Court, on Dec 14, last year, also dismissed Anwar’s application to review its previous decision.
From The New Straits Times