Some lawyers hold the view the reputation of the Attorney-General's Chambers has been badly tarnished by the allegation that one of its prosecutors was involved in a romantic affair with star witness Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan.

However, others feel the damage is "minor" as the DPP's role in the case was limited to taking down notes during the trial.

Lawyer Baljit Singh Sidhu said the alleged affair would certainly have serious repercussions for the A-G's Chambers.

"This allegation is serious and it does not look good for the prosecution. It leads to the issue of the prosecution team's integrity, especially since people view the case as politically trumped-up.

"If the allegation is true, it shows the DPP was acting unethically and unprofessionally in having an affair with the complainant," he said, adding that he did not want to be judgmental on the issue.

NONE Baljit, who is also a lecturer, said DPP Farah Azlina Latif's role being minor was not the issue.

"The fact remains that she is part of the prosecution's team and this should not have happened," he added.

Nevertheless, Baljit ( right ) commended the swift action taken by attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail to remove her from Anwar's prosecution team as something proper to dispel negative perceptions.

Another senior lawyer, who did not want to be named, laughed when asked about the matter, saying this could only happen in Malaysia.

Prosecution's image tainted

Yet another senior lawyer who also requested anonymity said as far as the bigger picture was concerned, people would question the ethics and conduct of the prosecution, especially with the involvement of a DPP, if the allegations proved to be true.

"She should have known better than to engage in a relationship with the complainant and star witness as she is also a lawyer. But people sometimes do not look at this bigger picture," he said.

On the other hand, he said, if her role had been limited to taking notes, than it should not affect the prosecution team that much.

As long as she was not involved in the prosecution or handling exhibits, it should be all right.

However, he noted that it was not ethical for a lawyer to have a relationship with a witness.

NONE David Matthews ( left ) said it was improper and would cast a doubt on the transparency of the prosecution team as this was a politically charged case.

"Most importantly, the public expects a very high level of ethics and prosecutarial conduct. Anything wrongly done will certainly taint the prosecution's image," the young laywer said.

Following her alleged affair, it is learnt that Farah has been laterally transferred from the Commercial Crime unit of the Prosecution Division to the Law Revision and Reform Division.

She has been in the spotlight following allegations made by blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin about her affair with Saiful.

On Wednesday, it was also reported that before the matter became public, she had cancelled her plan to marry her fiance about a week before the scheduled date.

No postponement, trial resumes on Monday

In a related development, High Court judge Justice Mohammad Zabidin Mohd Diah had rejected a defence team application to defer Monday's trial following the Court of Appeal setting a hearing date for their appeal to get the doctors' notes of the Kuala Lumpur Hospital's three physicians who had examined Saiful.

anwar ibrahim sodomy allegation saiful bukhari azlan first day in court 070808 sankara nair Justice Zabidin despatched the rejection letter to Anwar's solicitor Sankara Nair yesterday.

On another note, Sankara ( right ) said he has asked lead prosecutor solicitor-general II Mohd Yusof Zainal Abiden to either confirm or deny the so-called "affair" between Farah and Saiful.

"As such, we sent a reminder to him yesterday, and this time by adding that if we do not get his reply by (4pm) today July 30, 2010, we shall proceed to assume that the allegations are deemed to be true," he said in a statement.