KUALA LUMPUR – The high court here was today told that Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor’s trial over a solar hybrid project is a nullity as Attorney-General Tan Sri Idrus Harun has issued a backdated letter on the appointment of Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram as lead prosecutor in the case.
Rosmah’s counsel Datuk Jagjit Singh said according to the letter produced by the prosecution to the court today, the letter was signed by the current AG on May 21, 2021 to appoint Sri Ram as senior deputy public prosecutor effective August 30, 2018.
“In the letter, Idrus said Sri Ram could exercise all or any of right and powers vested in him (Idrus) under the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) or any written law as provided under Section 376 (3) of the CPC and specifically to conduct the prosecution in Rosmah’s solar case including any other criminal applications and appeals related thereto,” he said.
Jagjit said Idrus was a Court of Appeal judge on August 30, 2018, and he was appointed the AG on March 6, 2020.
“Idrus cannot issue a backdated letter when he was not the AG at that time (August 30, 2018). Based on the letter issued on May 21, the trial is a nullity,” he said in his submissions at the hearing of Rosmah’s bid to nullify her RM1.25 billion corruption trial over the solar hybrid project and to disqualify Sri Ram as lead prosecutor in the case.
Jagjit further argued that a new letter issued by the AG was an afterthought and therefore Sri Ram’s appointment was illegal, irregular and defective.
Rosmah, 69, filed the applications after the Court of Appeal had on April 8 allowed her appeal to get a copy of Sri Ram’s appointment letter after the prosecution agreed to provide it to the defence team.
Rosmah brought the matter up for appeal after the high court dismissed her application over Sri Ram’s appointment letter on August 19 last year.
The appointment letter was not dated on or before November 15, 2018, the day Rosmah was charged in court, and was not signed by then attorney-general Tan Sri Tommy Thomas.
Instead, the letter was dated July 8 last year and signed by Idrus.
The hearing before judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan continues on Thursday. – Bernama, July 12, 2021
