KUALA LUMPUR: The Attorney General's Chambers (AG-C) is seeking a gag order against public discussion on the addendum order in Datuk Seri Najib Razak's appeal over his house arrest issue.
Senior Federal Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan made an oral application for the order at the High Court here this morning.
He said the case involved sensitive issues that could potentially prejudice the ongoing judicial process.
"We applied for the order and asked that it remain in force pending the outcome of the hearing as it touches on sensitive issues.
"We do not want everyone making comments and talking about it in the media like they are now," he told reporters after a case management.
However, Judge Hayatul Akmal Abdul Aziz later ordered Shamsul to file a formal written application by Jan 20.
The AG-C is seeking a gag and prohibitive order to restrain the public from discussing Najib's judicial review seeking to compel Putrajaya to execute an alleged addendum order allowing him to serve the remainder of his jail term under house arrest.
Meanwhile, Najib's counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah objected to the application, describing the issue as akin to "the horses have bolted, and now we want to close the door."
"Everybody has discussed it. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has discussed it a lot more than anyone else," he said outside the courtroom.
Shamsul also said that his side would oppose the application by Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan, Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun, and Datuk Seri Zulkifli Noordin to act as watching brief lawyers in the case, representing opposition leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin, PAS Vice-President Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, and Bersatu Vice-President Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee.
The court has fixed March 11 for further case management.
On Jan 6, a three-bench Court of Appeal panel, in a split decision, allowed the former prime minister to initiate a judicial review to review the existence of an addendum issued by the former Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
The Appellate Court also allowed Najib to adduce additional affidavits to support his application.
Najib is currently serving a six-year prison sentence after being convicted of misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International Sdn Bhd.
The High Court had sentenced him to 12 years in prison with a fine of RM210 million, and the verdict was subsequently upheld by the Court of Appeal and Federal Court.
However, his prison sentence was halved to six years and his fine was reduced to RM50 million following his petition for a royal pardon on Sept 2, 2022.
Najib later filed an application on an alleged addendum order signed by the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
The addendum purportedly allowed Najib to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest. Previously, the High Court had dismissed his application.