Umno lawyer now targets Ambiga, wants her charged with contempt

Former Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan had criticised Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah for his conduct after Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's sodomy appeal. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, February 15, 2015.

Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who prosecuted for the government in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's sodomy appeal, now wants former Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan charged with contempt of court for criticising the judiciary.

The Umno lawyer told Utusan Malaysia's weekend edition that Ambiga was wrong in saying that the Barisan Nasional (BN) had made a "terrible mistake" by jailing Anwar.

Such a statement had insulted the courts by implying that the judiciary and BN, the coalition which is in federal power, were the same, Shafee told Mingguan Malaysia.

"I suggest that the Attorney-General take action," he was quoted as saying today.

"When such a remark is made, should we not answer? If we don't answer, the people will believe it," he told the Umno-controlled Malay daily.

Ambiga had on February 13 criticised Shafee for continuing to attack Anwar even after the case had been settled with the Federal Court's verdict on February 10.

The apex court upheld his sodomy conviction and five-year jail sentence.

Ambiga had said that it was unprecedented for Shafee to attack an accused after the court had delivered its verdict.

Since the verdict was issued, Shafee has been giving press statements and interviews to some media on the case.

In an interview with the Umno-controlled The New Straits Times (NST) on Friday, the Umno lawyer said if Anwar had taken the stand, the torrent of questions would have been so unrelenting that Anwar would have "fainted in the witness box". 

In Mingguan Malaysia today, Shafee also said he was willing to swear to Anwar’s guilt in a mosque or in Mecca.

DAP legal bureau chairman Gobind Singh Deo today said Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail should stop Shafee from making further commentary and criticism on Anwar, or it would show that the A-G was going beyond what was required of him in law and ethics as a public prosecutor.

- TMI