The High Court in Kuala Lumpur has fixed May 5 to deliver its decision on Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's applications to strike out a portion of Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua and Media Rakyat owner Chan Chee Kong's defence.

On the same day, the court would also decide on Pua's application to strike out Najib's suit.

The date was fixed by Judicial Commissioner Roslan Abu Bakar after he heard submissions from lawyer Mohd Hafarizam Harun representing Najib and N Surendran who appeared for Chan.

The submission related to Pua was done last week while today the court heard submission on Chan where Najib also seeks to strike off three paragraphs of his (Chan's) defence which cited the defence of qualified privilege and fair comment.

Hafarizam told the court that paragraphs seven and eight of Chan's defence are jumbled up to include comment and also imputation of facts.

"If they plead fair comment, then the statement in the defence should be on comment.

"The second defendant (Chan) cannot use the defence of justification and qualified privilege at the same time," he said.

The Umno-linked lawyer said that in Chan's (statement of) defence, the latter said he only uploaded a video on the YouTube on the Media Rakyat channel featuring a speech by Pua who alleged that the non-submission of audited 1MDB accounts amounted to stealing from the rakyat.

He asked where was the justification for this assertion (Pua made).

Meanwhile, Surendran maintained that his client's defence had fulfilled all conditions set in the rules of the court.

"It is an opinion and hence it is considered fair comment," he said.

It is not challenged that 1MDB failed to submit its audited accounts in 2014 and 2015, said the PKR lawyer.

Surendran also told the court that even in England it was difficult to differentiate fair comment from fact.

If there was a defect, he said then an amendment should be allowed to correct it.

"With this, I pray that Najib's application to strike out is dismissed with costs," he said.

Hafarizam countered, asking where was the particularisation in Chan's defence statement which differentiated facts from comments.

He claimed Chan did not particularise in his defence (statement) and hence his client's application to strike out the three paragraphs should be allowed,

Pua was represented by lawyer Benjamin Aliff.

Najib filed the suit on Nov 13, 2014, where Pua during a DAP fundraising dinner allegedly made defamatory remarks about 1MDB

He is seeking general, exemplary damages and costs and an injunction barring the defendants from continuing to publish or issue defamatory statements against him.