KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Razak claimed that former Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, had granted him permission to serve his remaining jail sentence under house arrest.
The former prime minister claimed it was part of the then King's addendum order but has been kept silent by the government since January this year.
Hence, Najib via his counsel from Messrs. Shafee & Co. has filed a judicial review at the High Court recently to compel the government to produce the impugned addendum dated Jan 29.
He named the Home Minister, Prison Department commissioner general, Attorney-General (AG), Federal Territories Pardons Board, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform), Legal Affairs Division director-general, and the government as respondents.
Najib in his affidavit claimed on Jan 29 that the then King ordered that the applicant's (Najib) imprisonment be reduced to six years and the fine reduced to RM50 million (main order).
"The King also immediately or simultaneously issued an addendum order on the same day stipulating that Najib be allowed to serve the reduced sentence of his imprisonment under condition of home arrest instead of confinement in Kajang Prison.
"The addendum order curiously was not announced by any of the respondents when the announcement of the main order only was made.
"It must be impressed that the addendum order was already in existence since Jan 29, but this anomaly was never revealed nor explained by any of the respondents," he claimed.
Najib claimed he later instructed his solicitors to confirm the details of the addendum order with the AG by way of a letter dated Feb 14 and copied to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as well as his deputy Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
"Subsequently, on March 22, the matter was escalated to the home minister regarding inter alia, the existence and lack of enforcement of the addendum order.
"On Feb 19, the applicant's solicitors also requested the original copy or a copy thereof of the main order from the Kajang Prison, but that request went unanswered.
"Consequently, since Jan 29, the applicant's personal rights have been adversely affected and infringed upon by the decision of all the respondents in ignoring and refraining from responding to the inquiries," he claimed.
Najib claimed the subsequent inaction by the Home Minister and Prison Department commissioner general to execute the said order, is irrational, unreasonable, illegal and arbitrary and offends the Federal Constitution and laws.
"His Majesty's orders are not merely administrative decrees, but reflections of the legal and moral authority vested in the Monarchy.
"Therefore, the respondents' disregard to the requests of the applicant constitutes a direct intrusion of the applicant's basic right as provided in the Federal Constitution and the laws generally.
"Over and above this the defiance of the Respondents constitute a direct contempt of the Institution of His Majesty Seri Paduka Baginda The Yang Di-Pertuan Agong.
"The respondents instead of obeying the orders of His Majesty, has unreasonably and irrationally denied the same in totality without lawful cause nor provide any cogent excuse/reasons for the failure," he claimed.
Najib asserted that the act of the respondents in not responding to his queries necessarily draws the adverse inference against them, in that the addendum order does exist with the substantive content as contended by the applicant.
Najib is currently serving a 12-year jail term after he was found guilty of one count of abuse of power with regard to Retirement Fund Inc's (KWAP) RM4 billion loan to SRC International Sdn Bhd, as well as three counts each of criminal breach of trust and abuse of power involving RM42 million of SRC funds.
He was also fined RM210 million.
SRC is a former subsidiary of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).
In August 2022, the Federal Court upheld the conviction.