KUALA LUMPUR (April 28): The High Court has temporarily halted all proceedings related to Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s royal addendum application.
The stay comes on the heels of the Federal Court decision earlier on Monday to take up the government’s case to challenge a lower court’s ruling that allowed the former prime minister’s appeal for a judicial review on the addendum.
At a case management on Monday, senior federal counsel Ahmad Hanir Hambaly asked the court to pause the gag order application and other matters related to the addendum and house arrest until the Federal Court decides on the government’s appeal.
Najib’s lawyer Tan Sri Shafee Abdullah confirmed that the application was mutual between the defence and the prosecution.
Earlier on Monday, the Federal Court allowed Attorney General (AG) Datuk Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar to challenge a Court of Appeal decision that allowed Najib’s appeal for a judicial review of the alleged house arrest addendum.
High Court Judge Hayatul Akmal Abdul Aziz was slated to hear the application for a gag order on the addendum issue, however, she had granted a stay of the proceedings at a request from both parties.
The Federal Court bench, led by Chief Judge of Malaya Datuk Seri Hasnah Mohamed Hashim, had advised both parties to seek Hayatul Akmal’s permission for a stay pending the appeal which has been set for July 1 and 2.
Hayatul Akmal also set July 3 for a case management for parties to brief her about the Federal Court decision.
Another application that is paused now is the bid for watching briefs by Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin, Terengganu Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar and former law minister Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan.
On Jan 6, the Court of Appeal in a majority decision allowed Najib’s appeal for the merits of his addendum challenge to be heard back at the High Court.
Najib’s hearing was then scheduled before Hayatul Akmal. Earlier, on July 3, Judge Amarjeet Singh Serjit Singh had refused to grant leave for Najib’s application to be heard, leading to the former PM’s appeal at the Court of Appeal.
Najib alleged that there is a purported addendum issued by the 16th Yang di Pertuan Agong Al Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah that allows Najib to serve the remainder of his jail sentence under house arrest.
Najib has been incarcerated since Aug 23, 2022.
The former Pekan MP was given a pardon which reduced his 12-year jail sentence and RM210 million fine to a six-year jail sentence and RM50 million fine after being found guilty in the corruption case involving SRC International Sdn Bhd.