PUTRAJAYA – The Federal Court today sent back the Gua Musang election petition filed by Barisan Nasional (BN) to the high court for a full hearing of the merits.
A three-member panel led by Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Sebli allowed the appeal by Mohd Azmi Mahmood, a representative for BN candidate Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, to set aside the high court’s decision to strike out the election petition.
The court also ordered the petition to go for a full hearing before another judge and fixed June 26 for mention of the case at the Kota Baru High Court.
In the court’s unanimous decision, justice Rahman said the high court judge had erred when they decided that the petition was filed out of time.
He also said the court was satisfied that the petitioner, Azmi, had fulfilled the requirements under the rules of the Election Offences Act 1954.
The other two judges were Datuk Seri Hasnah Mohammed Hashim and Datuk Nordin Hassan.
Azmi filed the petition in a bid to nullify the result for the Gua Musang parliamentary seat in last year’s general election (GE15), which was won by PAS-Bersatu candidate Datuk Mohd Azizi Abu Naim who defeated Tengku Razaleigh by a majority of 1,826 votes.
GE15 was held on November 19 last year.
Meanwhile, the same Federal Court panel today dismissed Putrajaya Umno vice-chief Datuk Ahmad Faisal Abdul Karim’s appeal to remit the election petition filed to challenge the GE15 results for the Putrajaya parliamentary seat to the high court for a full hearing.
Following the court’s decision, Bersatu vice-president Datuk Radzi Jidin retained his position as Putrajaya MP.
Justice Rahman said there was no merit in Faisal’s appeal as particulars pleaded by the petitioner in the petition lacked details and ordered Faisal to pay RM30,000 in costs.
Radzi defeated four-term incumbent Putrajaya MP Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor of BN with a 2,310-vote majority in a six-cornered fight.
Two separate high courts have respectively struck out both election petitions after allowing the preliminary objections raised by Radzi and Azizi.
On March 10, the Kuala Lumpur High Court allowed Radzi’s preliminary objection to strike out the petition after ruling that Faisal failed to prove that corrupt practices were committed by either Radzi or his agent.
Earlier on February 26, the Kota Baru High Court struck out Azmi’s petition after ruling that the petition was filed out of the permitted time frame of 28 days as set out under the Election Offences Act.
Lawyer Datuk Wira Mohd Hafarizam Harun appeared for both Azmi and Faisal while counsel Yusfarizal Yussoff represented Azizi and Radzi. – Bernama, June 19, 2023
