Anwar’s lawyer, J Leela, said the date was decided today after case management before deputy registrar Azniza Mohd Ali, with senior federal counsel Mazlifah Ayob represented the government.
Leela told FMT she had informed Azniza that all the earlier judges should be excluded from the bench that would rehear the case, saying she believed there are enough Federal Court judges for the new hearing.
The Federal Court, in a majority 5-2 ruling in early February, declined to answer the questions posed by Anwar, saying he had not demonstrated that the Act had interfered with his life.
Judge Nallini Pathmanathan, who delivered the majority verdict, ordered the case to be remitted to the High Court for deliberation.
Others in the majority were Chief Judge of Malaya Azahar Mohamed and Federal Court judges Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim, Mohd Zawawi Salleh and Idrus Harun.
Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat and the then chief judge of Sabah and Sarawak, David Wong Dak Wah, were in the minority. Both said the NSCA was unconstitutional as it was not enacted in accordance with the requirements of Article 149 of the Federal Constitution.
Last month, a seven-member bench unanimously allowed Anwar’s application to set aside the Feb 11 ruling and ordered a fresh hearing.
Bench chairman Abdul Rahman Sebli said the panel was of the view that this was a fit and proper case for the court to exercise its discretion in favour of Anwar.
In April, Anwar filed a motion to review the Federal Court’s majority ruling which refused to provide answers to his challenge on the validity of the NSCA.
The PKR president said there was a serious breach of natural justice as he was not accorded the right to be heard on the issue of whether the constitutional questions posed were abstract, academic or hypothetical.
Anwar said the majority came to a decision based on an issue that was never raised by the government in its submission. He said a grave injustice had been done and that the government had taken the position to strike out his suit before the High Court.
He is seeking a declaration that Section 12 of the Constitution (Amendment) Act 1983, Section 2 of the Constitution (Amendment) Act 1984, and Section 8 of the Constitution (Amendment) Act 1994 are null and void on grounds that they breach the basic structure of the Federal Constitution.
He is also seeking a consequential declaration that the NSCA is unconstitutional, null and void on grounds that it became law pursuant to an unconstitutional amendment, was not enacted in accordance with Article 149 and violates freedom of movement as guaranteed under Article 9(2) of the Federal Constitution.