By Asia Samachar | Malaysia |
Tycoon and former finance minister Daim Zainuddin and his wife have been hauled to court by the Malaysian anti-graft agency for what is anticipated to be long-drawn corruption cases, with implications on the nation’s political landscape.
In what are early days of the trials, lawyer Sachpreetraj Singh Sohanpal has been seen with Daim and his wife Na’imah Khalid when they appeared in public.
On Jan 10, Na’imah made her first public appearance in relation to the on-going investigations when she spoke to reporters before entering the national headquarters of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in Putrajaya. She was flanked by her legal representative Rajesh Nagaraja and Sachpreetraj who represented her two sons, Muhammad Amin Zainuddin Daim and Muhammad Amir Zainuddin Daim.
On Jan 29, wheelchair-bound Daim arrived at the court complex in Kuala Lumpur to face charges related to the disclosure of assets. Again, Sachpreetraj was one of the lawyers seen accompanying him.
A lawyer-activist, Sachpreetraj, has in the past been involved in cases concerning animal rights group, M Indira Gandhi’s battle with her ex-husband Muhammad Riduan Abdullah to recover her youngest daughter and the attempts by a Kelantan-based Orang Asli villagers to stop work on their ancestral land.
Sachpreetraj, a partner at Raj & Sach, described himself as dispute resolution lawyer with an emphasis on construction and commercial disputes.
The MACC had investigations of the 85-year-old suspected of corruption and money laundering. The agency has launched multiple investigations into allegations linked to large data dumps on the finances of high-profile Malaysians named in the Panama Papers and Pandora Papers. Those have resulted in the seizure of a Kuala Lumpur skyscraper owned by Daim’s family.
On Jan 27, Na’imah was charged in the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur with failing to declare her assets, which include Menara Ilham and several properties in the federal capital and Penang. She was represented by lawyers Mohd Yusof Zainal Abiden, M Puravalen and Alex Tan.
Daim – whose full name is Che Abdul Daim Zainuddin – has also engaged former attorney-general (AG) Tommy Thomas. The bigwig, on behalf of Daim and their company Ilham Tower Sdn Bhd (ITSB), has filed a judicial review application to challenge the MACC’s action to freeze their accounts and subject them to investigation. The iconic tower is owned by Daim, Na’imah and Daim’s four children and ITSB.
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