KOTA KINABALU: Mahathir Mohd Hashim, the father of Zara Qairina Mahathir, who has kept a low profile, made a surprise move by applying to be included as a party of interest in the inquest that began on Wednesday (Sept 3).
His three-member legal team, led by Sherzali Asli, made the application for a watching brief during the start of the inquest under new Coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan.
His application was separate from that of his wife.
Mahathir, who was not present in court, and his wife are currently separated but not divorced.
Noraidah Lamat's lawyers also made a fresh application to be included as an interested party in the inquest of Zara Qairina, who died from an apparent fall from her third-floor hostel in Papar on July 16.
Coroner Amir Shah also received applications from two lawyers representing two of the five teenagers accused of bullying in connection with Zara Qairina's death on July 17.
The Sabah Law Society has also reapplied to be an interested party following a decision by the High Court for all of them to reapply in front of the Coroner who replaced Azreena Azis.
Azreena's Aug 28 decision to allow the interested parties for the inquest while stepping aside as Coroner was overturned by High Court Justice Duncan Sikodol on Tuesday (Sept 2).
He ordered all interested parties to make a fresh application with the new coroner when deciding on a revision application to stop lawyers of the five teenagers accused of bullying from being parties of interest in the inquest.
The application for revision was made by both the Sabah Law Society and the lawyers representing Zara Qairina's mother.
Amir Hassan is expected to make a decision soon on all four applications after objections were raised against the application by the lawyers for the accused teenagers.
Zara Qairina, 13, was found unconscious at a drain at 4am on July 16 near her school hostel in Papar, Sabah.
She was later pronounced dead at Hospital Queen Elizabeth on July 17.
On Aug 20, five teenagers were charged with bullying Zara Qairina in the Kota Kinabalu Juvenile Court.
