KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 12): The Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) will be objecting to the Bar's legal bid against Datuk Seri Najib Razak's house arrest.
Senior Federal Council (SFC) Ahmad Hanir Hambaly @ Arwi told the court that the AGC will be objecting as the Pardons Board's decision headed by His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, King of Malaysia, is not justiciable.
He added that since the AGC received the court papers two days ago, he will need some time to file the submissions for the matter.
High Court judge Indra Nehru Savandiah was slated to hear the Bar's fresh application for leave (permission) to commence judicial review against Najib's house arrest on Thursday.
The matter was to be ex parte but Najib's lawyer Muhammad Farhan Shafee was present on Thursday and was allowed to be part of the proceedings to assist the court.
Lawyers Zainur Zakaria and Rajpal Singh Ghai appeared for the Bar on Thursday.
Leave application to be heard in March next year
The court then set March 17 next year to hear the leave application.
The Bar had filed a fresh application challenging Najib's second pardon granted on Sept 18, which allows him to serve the remainder of his SRC International imprisonment term in the confines of his home, with the caveat that he pays the RM 50 million fine.
Umno, the party Najib once led, paid the fine last Friday.
Najib was then anticipated to return to his Langgak Duta residence to begin his home confinement. However, Attorney-General Tan Sri Dusuki Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar raised concerns over purported ambiguity over the court's discharge order.
Following a weekend of confusion, on Tuesday, High Court judge Datuk Aslam Zainuddin revoked the disputed court order issued on Nov 6 and issued a rectified order that clarified that the twice-convicted former prime minister is now under home confinement until Aug 23, 2028.
He then ordered Najib to begin his home confinement with immediate effect.
In this application, the Bar is seeking a court declaration that the processes, decisions, and orders allowing such an arrangement are unconstitutional, null and void.
They are also seeking a court order to quash and set aside the Federal Territories Pardons Board's proceedings held on Sept 18 and any related decisions.
The legal professional body has named the Federal Territories Pardons Board, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform), Commissioner General of Prison, and Najib as the respondents.
The Bar is also seeking a court order to stop Najib or his agents from submitting any further application to the Pardon's Board until the full determination and disposal of all pending criminal cases.
Bar stresses that there seems to be purported haste in Najib's second pardon, no such house arrest arrangement allocated in law
In the supporting affidavit by Bar secretary Jayabalan Raman Kutty, seen by The Edge, "house arrest" does not fall within the meaning of a pardon, a reprieve, or a respite per the Constitution, thus its is ultra vires.
He added that the house arrest is not provided for under the country's criminal law and seems to be tailored for Najib alone, which contravenes the maxim that everyone is equal before the law.
"The Respondents are putting the cart before the horse. The Federal Constitution does not provide anything to be done that is not provided for under Malaysian law," he said.
Further, he said that Najib's second pardon application appears to have been given "improper priority-treatment" and "above petitions by other inmates made earlier or more deserving in merit".