Lawyer Zulkifli Nordin, former counsel for one of the defendants in the Altantuya case, has vehemently defended his reputation amidst mounting criticisms on his professionalism.

"I am a servant of justice, and I will do what justice requires me to do so. I will not stoop so low as to engage in a public debate over this matter," he said in response to criticism of his withdrawal as counsel due to alleged "third-party interference".

Hazman Ahmad, newly appointed lawyer for Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri - one of three defendants charged for the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu had criticised Zulkifli for the declaration made outside the Shah Alam High Court on Monday.

Hazman claimed that Zulkifli had offered no plans to defend Azilah Hadri as, and had only made the announcement of his withdrawal from the case in the interests of his political career.

Po litical interests

"He was only using the claim (of third-party interference) as part of his political agenda. In his statement to the foreign media yesterday, he did not mention any plan to save his client, but only sought to connect the case to speculations found on the Internet," Hazman told StarOnline.

"What he did was ethically and morally wrong. He only sought to make the connection for political interests," he added.

New Zealand law graduate Zulkifli, who runs his own law firm, has curtly denied all accusations and asserted that he has no hidden agenda.

"I deny everything that he (Hazman) said," Zulkifli ( right ) told malaysiakini when contacted.

"I am not a mercenary for any political party, individual, or client. If he claims this is so, my track record proves otherwise. I have struggled to dispense with justice from my first day as a lawyer," he said..

Zulklifi added that he had informed his former client of his withdrawal from the case in early April.