The sodomy trial resumes today with senior counsel Karpal Singh expected to grill Hospital Kuala Lumpur pathologist Dr Siew Sheue Feng about the medical pro-forma forms.

The pro-forma form is a standard sexual assault victim questionnaire and in this case it would be on the complainant, Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, who is former political aide to Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim.

In the last court session , Siew provided a blank pro-forma form for the defence’s reference.

Siew, had also pointedly refused to refer to the medical notes during the defence’s cross-examination but he received a lot of flak after he was caught referring to it during the break.

As a result, Kuala Lumpur High Court judge justice Mohd Zabidin Mohd Diah has ordered it to be provided to the defence.

Solicitor-general II Mohd Yusof Zainal Abiden returns to court after having recovered from a leg fracture.

The trial has also attracted a Finish embassy representative among many other foreign observers.

LIVE REPORTS

8.29am: Sodomy complainant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan's father Azlan Mohd Lazim is in court at the Jalan Duta Court Complex in Kuala Lumpur.

azlan 8.35am: There are not many people in court so far. It could be because the Royal Commission of Inquiry on Teoh Beng Hock is kicking off its hearings today also at the Jalan Duta Court Complex.

Journalists and the public are allowed to go into the courtroom. The public prosecuting team led by solicitor-general II Mohd Yusof Zainal Abiden enters the courtroom from a separate entrance.

8.36am: A representative from the Australian embassy arrives along with PKR MP Johari Abdul, who represents Sungai Petani, Kedah.

Also there are not many journalists, particularly from the Chinese press, as probably the attention is on the RCI.

8.39am: Anwar arrives with wife and PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail along with approximately a dozen of supporters.

Also seen in court is former Jeli MP Mohd Apandi Mohamad from PAS, who was acquitted last Friday of 13 charges of falsifying documents pertaining to his parliamentary accommodation claims nine years ago.

A group of Anwar supporters wearing 'Kami sokong Anwar' t-shirts have stationed themselves outside the court room.

8.41am: Lawyer Sankara Nair arrives with Australian pathologist Dr David Wells, who has been hired to advise the defence team.

9.01am: Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim walks into the courtroom and shakes hand with everybody.

Also sitting in the public gallery is Machang MP and PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution.

9.05am: Court is called into session with High Cout justice Mohd Zabidin Mohd Diah presiding.

There is, however, no sign of lead defence lawyer Karpal Singh. The public gallery is quite full with about 70 people.

9.07am: Court stands down after defence lawyers Param Cumaraswamy and Sankara Nair request the judge for another 10 minutes to wait for Karpal.

"He is around and is scheduled to do the cross (examination) as this is his part," says Param.

It is learnt that Karpal is at the Royal Commission of Inquiry on Teoh Beng Hock which will be holding its hearing in another courtroom nearby.

9.37am: Court yet to begin as it is still awaiting Karpal's arrival, who is being held up at Teoh RCI.

The court interpreter has inquired twice as to when Karpal would be in court.

9.41am: Court resumes without Karpal.

NONE Hospital Kuala Lumpur pathologist Dr Siew Sheue Feng ( right ) takes the witness stand. Defence lawyer Sankara Nair to do the cross-examination.

A representative from the US embassy arrives.

9.43am: Sankara begins by asking Dr Siew about the pro-forma form.

Dr Siew says he filled in pages 3, 5 and 6 of the document, and the form is for rape victims.

"There is no specific pro-forma for sodomy cases at HKL," says Dr Siew.

9.48am: Dr Siew adds that there was then no specific pro-forma form for sodomy cases. "Only now there is."

A heated exchange breaks out between the witness and Sankara.

Witness says he did not fill page 4 of the form because it involved the rape victim and needed his consent.

9.50am: Dr Siew says the form used has a diagram which included the vagina and other female body parts, and was thus not suitable for sodomy cases.

He says there was another doctor who helped him fill the pro-forma form.

"Also, investigating officer Jude Pereira fill up one page of it (the form)," adds Siew.

10.02am: "He (Saiful) had been sodomised by the VIP eight times," says Dr Siew, when asked about Saiful's medical history.

There is an exchange between defence lawyer Sankara and Dr Siew on why the doctor has failed to fully ask about Saiful's medical history.

10.13am: Dr Siew says Saiful went to the outpatient clinic at HKL and was referred to the accident and emergency unit, and later to the one-stop crisis centre.

Saiful came in at 6pm on June 28, 2008.

But Sankara says he wants to know what happened in between, as the victim was only examined at 10pm.

Batu MP Tian Chua walks into the courtroom and takes a seat in the public gallery.

10.20am: Solicitor-general II Mohd Yusof Zainal Abiden objects to Sankara line of questioning, saying he is wasting the court's time by asking something which the witness does not know.

Earlier, Dr Siew had told the court he knew of one Dr Suresh, who had also attended to Saiful.

Judge Zabidin dismisses the objection and allows the defence to continue questioning.

Hospital Pusrawi 280708.jpg 10.27am: Dr Siew is given the Hospital Pusrawi's doctor report.

"Pain in anus, patient alleged assaulted by introducing plastic into anus," says Dr Siew reading from the Pusrawi report aloud.

Questioned by the defence, Dr Siew agrees that pain in anus could be as a result of fissure or trauma.

The witness adds that he had examined Saiful around 9.12pm that night, and that Saiful looked calm and cool.

Sankara says if the patient is in pain, the proctoscope may not be inserted.

10.39am: Dr Siew reads the Pusrawi hospital report, which states that Saiful's anus was in pain for two days.

The Pusrawi doctor had also inserted a proctoscope inside Saiful's anus and noticed no tear, no injury and no discharge.

Dr Siew concedes he has seen a low number of sexual assault cases compared to international standards, since he has attended to only 20 sodomy and fewer than 100 rape cases since 2000.

10.52am: Sankara asks for a 10-minute break after lead defence lawyer Karpal enters the courtroom.

Justice Zabidin allows the court to stand down.

11.10am: Court resumes.

11.13am: Dr Siew, when questioned by Sankara, says that the HKL forensic pathologist operates in an unbiased manner, without fear or favour, and that all cases are treated fairly.

Dr Siew says DNA tests are not done in HKL but at the Chemistry Department. He agrees he has some knowledge of DNA.

11.41pm: Pointing to the chemist’s report, Sankara asks the witness to read the part that states Saiful's seminal and semen stains were found on the complainant's underwear and trousers.

However, Dr Siew says he did not note it down in the report.

12.32pm: Court adjourns to 2pm.

2.13pm: Court resumes with Justice Zabidin presiding. Dr Siew returns to the witness stand.

2.21pm: Dr Siew testifies that he had signed on the bottle containing the cotton swab sample. However, he did not sign on the sealed plastic bag wherein the bottle was placed.

“I wrote on the plastic bag but did not sign it. I do not think it was necessary," he said when asked by Sankara whether this was good practice.

Dr Siew said he sealed 10 cotton swab samples.

2.31pm: Responding to a question from Sankara, Dr Siew says he is competent in his task.

Dr Siew also says the chemist’s reports are given back to him by the police, although this may at times take months.

Dr Siew said in Saiful's case, the sample was sent on June 30, 2008, two days after the examination. The results were obtained on July 11.

3.01pm: Sankara calls Dr Siew a liar and the latter denied that investigating officer Jude Pereira had told him that the semen samples obtained from Saiful’s rectum belonged to Anwar.

“I am not lying,” said the doctor.

Earlier, Siew told the court that he was informed by Pereira that the male DNA marked “Y” by the chemist belonged to Anwar.

3.03pm: Sankara completes cross-examination. DPP Nordin Hassan begins re-examination. 

3.17pm: During re-examination by DPP Nordin Hassan, Dr Siew said investigating officer Jude Pereira did not interfere with nor dictate the doctors’ examination on Saiful.

Dr Siew also said that Jude was only involved in writing the investigating officer's particular's in the pro-forma form and not elsewhere.

3.29pm: Dr Siew said sperm or semen specimens can be successfully recovered from the anal area within 46 hours and if it was inside the rectum, it could last for 65 hours.

This is conclusion was based on medical literature.

3.40pm: HKL emergency care specialist Dr Khairul Nizam is called to the witness stand. Upon questioning by Sankara, Khairul said that Saiful arrived at the trauma centre at 5pm and was attended to at 9pm.

"Saiful was calm when I examined him," said Khairul, adding this was not normal behaviour, upon further questioning by Sankara. 

4.11pm: Court adjourns. Hearing will resume on Wednesday, 8.30am.