KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court today allowed the application to refer two constitutional questions relating to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's investigation into Court of Appeal judge Datuk Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali to be heard and decided in the Federal Court.
High Court judge Datuk Noorin Badaruddin ruled that the application, filed by plaintiffs Nur Ain Mustapa, Sreekant Pillai and Haris Ibrahim on May 7, arose in the matter related to the provisions of the Federal Constitution.
She said it was apparent that the investigation by the MACC on a serving judge of the superior court was viewed as an encroachment on the separation of powers.
"The investigation is reasonably viewed as having given rise to the impression that the judiciary is under attack, which has a bearing on the public perception of and confidence in the judiciary.
"It cannot be denied that this court is empowered to determine the questions, but it becomes a question of concern of having to go through the appellate process on a matter that is important to the judiciary as a whole.
"The Federal Court is the correct and appropriate forum to hear matters that affect the judiciary as a whole," she said when giving her ruling at the Kuala Lumpur Court Complex here today.
On May 7, the trio filed a legal suit seeking to declare that the MACC was not entitled to investigate serving judges unless they have been suspended or removed.
The plaintiffs, represented by solicitors Messrs Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, named MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki, the MACC and the Malaysian government as the first to third defendants in the suit.
They seek to declare that the MACC was not entitled to investigate serving judges unless they have been suspended or removed.
They also seek a declaration that a public prosecutor was not empowered to institute or conduct any proceeding for an offence against serving judges of a court and that investigations against Nazlan were unconstitutional.
The case management to update the High Court on the matter has been fixed on Oct 19.