KUALA LUMPUR: The Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) is objecting to the Malaysian Bar's leave application to challenge the Pardons Board decision relating to Datuk Seri Najib Razak's house arrest.
Lawyer Zainur Zakaria, who represented the Bar, told the High Court that the AGC would be objecting to the application.
Senior Federal Counsel Ahmad Hanir Hambaly confirmed this and said the AGC needed time to respond to the application after receiving the document via e-mail two days ago.
He said the AGC contended that the impugned decision was non-justiciable as it was in relation to the decision by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong who presided over a Pardons Board meeting.
"That is the stand we will be taking, Yang Arif. But we need time to file in our written submissions and put our objections in a proper way. I humbly request time before the court for us to file our submissions," he said during a hearing before Justice S. Indra Nehru on Thursday (Nov 12).
Lawyer Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee, who appeared for Najib, told the court they want to file written submissions on the basis that any possible order, following leave being granted by the court, would directly affect his client.
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The court instructed for submissions to be filed within one month on Dec 14 and parties to reply by Dec 28.
"The hearing date, mutually agreed by everyone, is March 17," Justice Indra Nehru said.
On Tuesday (Nov 10), the Bar filed the leave application and named the Pardons Board for the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform), the Commissioner General of Prisons and Najib as the first through fourth respondents.
It wants a court declaration that the proceedings, processes, decisions, actions, orders and arrangements made regarding the house arrest on Sept 18 are unlawful, unconstitutional, ultra vires, null and void.
In a supporting affidavit, affirmed by Bar secretary R. Jayabalan, the Bar contended that Najib's house arrest did not fall within the meaning of a pardon, a reprieve, or a respite under the Federal Constitution.
It said house arrest was not provided for under Malaysian criminal law and appeared to be specifically tailored to one convict alone, namely Najib.
The Bar said if leave was granted, and pending the final disposal of the judicial review, the execution or implementation of the house arrest should be stayed or suspended until further order of the court.
On Tuesday, the High Court ordered the former prime minister to serve the remainder of his prison sentence in the SRC International Sdn Bhd case under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028, following a conditional pardon and a full settlement of his RM50mil fine in the case, which was paid on Friday (Nov 6).
