The High Court today granted a representative from Law Asia, an international organisation of lawyers associations, judges and legal academics from the Asia Pacific region, to hold a watching brief in veteran lawyer Karpal Singh's sedition trial.

Judicial Commisioner Azman Abdullah, in allowing the application, said the representative would be given the status during the trial, scheduled to start on August 12.

tan boon hwa sue macc 220709 karpal “I have received the application from Law Asia, from the Bar Council and a curriculum vitae from former Australian Supreme Court judge, Jeffrey Miles, who also wants to observe Karpal's sedition trial,” he said.

“The reason I called the prosecution, the defence lawyer and the Bar Council today is to get input on the application. Copies of the application was sent last month and this month to the court and the defence lawyer. However, a copy was not handed to the prosecution,” he said at the start of today's proceedings.

Azman said he does not mind granting the watching brief status, provided they do not violate provisions under the Legal Professions Act 1976 (LPA) and that that the representative would not be limitted to just Miles only but to any representative from Law Asia.

Prosecution objects to application

DPP Kamaluddin Md Said, said he would be objecting to the application as they may not be qualified under the LPA.

“If they want to observe the trial, they can do so from the public gallery but not sit with us and take part in the trial as watching brief,” he said, adding that Law Asia, can take part in the proceedings through the Bar Council representative Gerard Gomez, who had been appointed watching brief status.

gobind singh deo jalan duta court 230409 05 Counsel Gobind Singh Deo (left) , representing his father, Karpal, told the court he had no objections to the application and apologised that his father was not able to make it to today's proceedings as was having a high fever and he had been given a week's medical leave.

Bar Council representative Anand Ponnudurai then told the court that if the court grants observer status only, there was no need for Law Asia to make an application for watching brief status.

Azman then agreed and decided to grant watching brief status to a representative from Law Asia provided they fulfil the requirements under LPA.

“We will then look and see what happens next, if the representative does not fulfil requirements under LPA,” he said.

If a representative is granted watching brief status, he can also put questions to witnesses, while an observer may not take any part in the proceedings.

Karpal, who is the DAP Bukit Gelugor MP, was charged with sedition at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court on March 17 after allegedly making a statement to sue the Sultan of Perak over the political crisis in the state.

The case was then transferred to the High Court on March 23 following an order signed by Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail dated March 16.