“We are not comfortable with a Zoom hearing. It’s discretionary and dependent on the parties to agree to it,” said lawyer Sarah Abishegam, who appeared for the science, technology and innovation minister.
Federal Court deputy registrar Hafiizullah Omar @ Md Salleh, who conducted case management today, requested Sarah to write in for the attention of the judges hearing the appeal.
Lawyer J Leela, who represented Anwar, said she was prepared to make submissions through a virtual hearing.
Hafiizullah said an open court hearing on Dec 15, as rostered earlier, would be held subject to the lifting of the CMCO on Dec 6.
He said parties would be required to make submissions on Dec 15 through a virtual hearing should the CMCO be extended.
Leela said the hearing of the case had been postponed three times since last December.
On April 10, 2019, Khairy obtained leave from the apex court to challenge the Court of Appeal ruling. The appellate court had maintained on Feb 19, 2018, the RM150,000 in damages awarded to Anwar after striking out Khairy’s appeal.
A three-man bench, chaired by Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, said Khairy’s notice was “ambiguous and uncertain”.
Tengku Maimun, who is now the chief justice, said the bench was bound by a Federal Court ruling that an appellant must file separate notices if there is more than one appeal.
Khairy had appealed against High Court judge Azizul Azmi Adnan’s decision barring him from amending his statement of defence after the trial began, finding him liable and ordering the quantum of damages.
He filed a single notice of appeal, to which Anwar responded by filing an application to annul the notice, saying it was defective.
In 2017, Azizul ruled that Khairy’s “main belakang” statement in 2008 had a sexual connotation meant to attack Anwar and dismissed Khairy’s defence of fair comment and qualified privilege.
Azizul ordered Khairy to pay Anwar RM150,000 in damages and a further RM60,000 in costs.
In the RM100 million suit, Anwar alleged that Khairy, then Umno Youth vice-chief, had uttered defamatory words against him at a ceramah in Lembah Pantai on Feb 20, 2008.
Anwar claimed that the “main belakang” phrase used by Khairy suggested that he was a homosexual and a person of low morals.