Aides' bids to remove Anwar's name from lawsuits fail

PETALING JAYA: Two aides of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (pic) failed in their respective bids to have the PKR leader's name removed from lawsuits filed by Muhammad Yusoff Rawther against them.

The Shah Alam Sessions Courts on Wednesday (Feb 19) rejected the separate applications filed by Anwar's political secretary Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak and press secretary Tunku Nashrul Tunku Abaidah.

Yusoff had filed a civil suit against Farhash for physically assaulting him on May 16 last year, and a defamation suit against Nashrul for issuing press statements in June last year that contained allegations aimed at tarnishing his reputation.

Farhash and Nashrul applied to have Anwar's name omitted from Yusoff's statements of claim on grounds of "political motivation".

Sessions Court Judge Fathiyah Idris rejected with costs the application filed by Farhash to remove Anwar's name from the statement of claim and fixed the next case management date for March 20.

Sessions Court Judge Datuk Ishak Bakri rejected Tunku Nashrul's application and ordered him to pay RM1,000 to the plaintiff.

Ishak had fixed the next case management for March 20.

Lawyers Muhammad Azwar Ab Manab and Azrul Haziq represented defendants Farhash and Nashrul while Nasbal Harun appeared on behalf of Yusoff's counsel Haniff Khatri Abdulla.