KUALA LUMPUR: The government and two others succeeded in setting aside a third-party notice filed by former attorney-general (AG) Tan Sri Tommy Thomas (pic), who sought to bring his successor, Tan Sri Idrus Harun, into Tan Sri Shahrir Abdul Samad’s malicious prosecution suit.
High Court judge Justice Gan Techiong, in his decision, said it was the plaintiff’s (Shahrir) prerogative to decide who to sue when he chose not to name Idrus as a co-defendant.
The court opined that Thomas was still at liberty to subpoena Idrus if he deemed it necessary for Idrus to testify in this case and that Thomas would suffer no prejudice at all if the court set aside the third-party proceedings.
“The first defendant’s constitutional rights are not affected by the absence of his successor as a third-party in this civil suit.
“I am therefore of the view that the second, third and fourth defendants’ application to set aside the third-party notice ought to be allowed to avoid wasting costs for the fourth defendant (the government),” he said.
Apart from the government, two other defendants were former Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Latheefa Koya and the MACC.
On Jan 30, Thomas obtained leave through an ex parte application to issue a third-party notice against Idrus.
Thomas is seeking to claim full indemnity or contribution from Idrus in the event the court holds the first defendant liable to pay damages to the plaintiff.
Thomas contended that following his resignation in February 2020, he had no further involvement in the prosecution against the plaintiff, and Idrus, who was named as the third party in this civil suit, was the AG when the criminal trial commenced, resulting in 22 prosecution witnesses being called before a discharge was applied for by the prosecution on Jan 5, 2023.
Shahrir’s lawsuit alleges malicious prosecution from Thomas, who was then the AG when Shahrir was criminally charged over an RM1mil cheque he received from former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak for restoration work on the Puri Langkasuka housing project in Larkin, Johor.
Thomas, who served as AG from June 4, 2018, to Feb 28, 2020, refuted Shahrir’s allegations of abuse of power, describing them as “unsustainable”.
He stated that the discretion to charge could only be exercised after the AG receives the investigation papers from agencies like the MACC.
Thomas further explained that he resigned on Feb 28, 2020, and that Shahrir’s criminal trial began on July 26, 2022.
The trial for the main suit is fixed on Aug 19.
