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©New
Straits Times (Used by permission)
SHAH ALAM: Private investigator P. Balasubramaniam and Deputy
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak will not be called to testify in the
Altantuya Shaariibuu murder trial.
High Court judge Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin yesterday rejected
counsel Karpal Singh's application to reopen the case and recall witnesses.
(The prosecution had closed its case on June 23.)
Karpal, who is holding a watching brief for Altantuya's family and the Mongolian
government, also sought to call three others mentioned in Balasubramaniam's
statutory declaration, which was filed earlier this month, to give evidence.
They include Deputy Superintendent of Police Musa Safri, lawyer Dhiren Rene
Norendra and a police officer identified only as DSP Idris.
Karpal's application which was filed on Monday, was supposed
to be heard yesterday before the submissions at the end of the prosecution
stage.
Deputy public prosecutor Tun Abd Majid Tun Hamzah, however, raised preliminary
objections saying the motion should not be heard.
"The two statutory declarations in question are hearsay. If anyone were to file
this motion to reopen the case, it should be the person who made the statutory
declaration," said Tun Abd Majid.
"Besides, the statutory declarations are not public documents. Therefore they
should not be used."
Mohd Zaki said the two statutory declarations were being investigated and
questioned Karpal if he had locus standi to file the affidavit to reopen the
case as he was merely holding a watching brief.
Karpal argued that he had locus standi as he was representing the victim's
family.
Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, 32, and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, 36, both
Special Action Squad members, are charged with murdering Altantuya at Mukim
Bukit Raja, Selangor, between 10pm on Oct 19 and 1am the next day. Political
analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, 47, is charged with abetting them.
Azilah's counsel Datuk Hazman Ahmad adopted the prosecution's arguments, while
Sirul's counsel Kamarul Hisham Kamaruddin said it was always the purview of the
prosecution to decide whom to call as witness and what part of the evidence is
credible. Razak's counsel, Wong Kian Kheong, said Karpal should have gone
through the prosecution or the defence counsel to decide to use the statutory
declarations.
Later, Hazman who was submitting at the end of the prosecution's case, said
witness Lance Corporal Rohaniza Roslan's evidence should not be impeached. (The
prosecution had applied to impeach Rohaniza's credibility after they found her
evidence in court contradicted her police statement. Rohazniza was Azilah's
ex-girlfriend).
Meanwhile, counsel J. Kuldeep Kumar, who is also representing Azilah, argued
that the court should exercise its discretion in favour of Azilah to exclude
testimony by witnesses, alleging that Azilah had showed them where the Mongolian
woman was shot and blown up.
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Circular No 297/2008
