Lawyer Haikaldin Mahyidin, representing Thomas, said the former Johor Bahru MP’s lawyers want the judge recused on grounds that she may be privy to 1MDB matters.

Before Roz Mawar was appointed as a judicial commissioner, she was attached to the prosecution division of the Securities Commission Malaysia.

Haikaldin said Shahrir was also objecting to legal firm Tommy Thomas Advocates and Solicitors representing Thomas on grounds of conflict of interest.

“They contend that one of the lawyers from this firm could be involved in the 1MDB investigations,” said Haikaldin, who appeared for Thomas in a case management before High Court senior assistant registrar Nur Shasha Hidayah Nor Azahar today.

Haikaldin said Shahrir had also raised the issue of lawyers from the firm being given a fiat, or licence, by the Attorney-General’s Chambers to represent Thomas.

“Nur Shasha has asked them to raise these matters before the judge (Roz Mawar) when she conducts an online proceeding on April 4,” he told FMT.

Counsel Ivan Teng and Syahrul Syazwan Salehin appeared for Shahrir while Syafiq Affandy represented former Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Latheefa Koya, MACC and the government.

The suit, which includes an action for malicious investigation and wrongful arrest, was filed in December 2023 after Shahrir’s acquittal of receiving RM1 million from former prime minister Najib Razak in 2013 and not declaring the sum to the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN). The funds were alleged to have originated from 1MDB.

Shahrir claimed that Thomas failed to order for the probe of the case to be completed before deciding to grant permission to prosecute.

Shahrir also said that MACC, under Latheefa, had deliberately failed and refused to investigate his statement that the RM1 million was to reimburse the money which he had advanced from his personal savings account for rehabilitation works on the Puri Langkasuka project.

He said MACC likewise took no measures to ask LHDN to determine whether the RM1 million was the plaintiff’s income before charging him.

He said that the actions of Thomas and Latheefa as public servants were an abuse of their power or public authority.

Shahrir is seeking damages for mental, emotional and physical torture and loss of reputation.

Thomas, who was attorney-general from June 2018 to February 2020, has applied to strike out the suit on grounds that he had the discretion to frame a charge in his capacity as public prosecutor.

He claimed that as public prosecutor, he had no control over the investigation process which was carried out independently by MACC.