High Court to Deliver Verdict on 2021 Parliament Suspension Case April 29

Post by : Mina Rahman

The High Court has set April 29 for its ruling on a judicial review initiated by two members of parliament who are contesting former Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s advice to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong regarding the suspension of Parliament during the COVID-19 emergency in 2021.

Judge Datuk Aliza Sulaiman has also scheduled the same date to deliberatively address two originating summons brought forth by the Malaysian Bar, Bersih 2.0, among others, which similarly challenge the emergency proclamation.

Previously, the Federal Court had allowed Pasir Gudang MP Hassan Karim and Perak state assemblyman Abdul Aziz Bari to continue with the judicial review, sending the case back to the High Court for substantive hearings.

Counsel Datuk Dr Gurdial Singh Nijar, representing the lawmakers, contends that the Sections 11, 14, and 15 of the emergency ordinance were unnecessary, unreasonable, and disproportionate. They stress that the suspension of Parliament and State Legislative Assemblies was unjustifiable, especially as other economic activities, including night markets, remained operational during the pandemic.

Dr Gurdial asserted that the government's actions breached mandatory constitutional provisions under Article 150(3) and Article 150(5), which mandate that emergency ordinances must be tabled and debated in Parliament. He emphasized that it is Parliament's responsibility to determine the validity of such ordinances.

On the other hand, Senior Federal Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan, representing the former prime minister and the government, argued that the judicial review has become academic since the Emergency Ordinance expired in August 2021. He mentioned that Parliament deliberated and repealed the ordinance on October 25, 2021, rendering the legal challenge moot.

Shamsul further noted that any court orders against the former prime minister are no longer actionable as he resigned in August 2021, concluding that the requests made by the applicants have been overtaken by subsequent events.

The applicants are seeking a court declaration to deem the Cabinet’s advisement to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong regarding Section 14 of the Emergency (Essential Powers) Ordinance 2021, which resulted in the suspension of Parliament, as unconstitutional, unlawful, null, and devoid of legal power.