January 7, 2025
Petaling Jaya – While Datuk Seri Najib may have succeeded in obtaining permission from the Court of Appeal for judicial review of the Crown Addendum, lawyers say the process has only just begun.
They said it may take some time for the former prime minister to be placed under house arrest, adding that the process could take several months as a judicial review will be heard by the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
Lawyer Datuk Keeson Ram Vincent said Najib now has a legitimate case to argue in the High Court.
“Yesterday's decision by the court (Court of Appeal) basically allowed Najib to apply for judicial review to the High Court to implement the supplementary order as part of the pardon,” he said in an interview.
“This is because the court ruled that Najib has now filed a royal addendum and therefore has reasonable grounds to argue in the High Court.
“The Court of Appeal also allowed additional evidence in the form of an affidavit by Datuk Mohamad Nizar (i.e. the addendum itself) and a letter from the Pahang Royal Family to be admitted as part of the High Court evidence.
“As the appeal for leave has now been granted, the case will be remanded back to the High Court to hear on the merits whether Najib is entitled to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest,” Gieson said.
Lawyer Datuk Dr Baljit Singh Sidhu said the High Court hearing could take up to six months.
“The Court of Appeal's decision is a leave of absence and not the substance of the matter,” he said.
Baljit pointed out that Najib's 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) corruption case is ongoing and may also have an impact on the house arrest application.
“Yes, that will be an issue because it is still pending in court. Pardons will also be on a case-by-case basis,” he said.
Lawyer Rajesh Nagarajan said the High Court's judicial review hearing and ruling could take three to six months.
“This (SRC International) is a completely different case and will be heard separately.
“If Najib is convicted again, then the whole house arrest issue will become redundant and he will have to make a completely new application to be exempted from the 1MDB conviction,” he said of the 1MDB case.
Regarding Umno's demand for a full pardon, Rajesh said the more important thing now is to determine whether the pardon committee violated the former Yang di-Pertuan Agong's decree.
“As the matter is before the courts, the Pardon Board should not consider Najib's application, if any.
“I think it is important now to determine whether the pardon committee violated the wishes of the former king by not including a house arrest directive when deciding and announcing Najib's partial pardon,” he said.
In February last year, the Pardon Board halved Najib's sentence to six years for embezzling RM42 million in the SRC International case.
