The highly anticipated decision on whether Raeesah Khan would be impeached as a witness in the ongoing trial of Workers’ Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh was left unresolved on the third day of the trial.
Impeaching a witness means challenging their credibility or truthfulness during a trial, often by presenting evidence that contradicts their statements. When a witness is impeached, their credibility is questioned, and the judge may doubt the reliability of their testimony.
Instead, the day’s proceedings focused on the defense’s efforts to highlight contradictions in Ms Khan’s testimony and the power dynamics within the WP leadership.
Here’s what happened today.
Morning Session: Defense Presses on Contradictions
Pritam Singh’s lawyer, Mr Andre Jumabhoy, began the day by questioning Ms Khan’s consistency in her testimony. He pointed out discrepancies between her previous Committee of Privileges (COP) hearing in 2021 and her recent court statements regarding Mr Singh’s alleged assurances and her fear of consequences.
Mr Jumabhoy argued that Ms Khan received contradictory messages from Mr Singh, first warning about substantiating claims made in Parliament and then allegedly telling her he would not judge her if she maintained her untruth.
Ms Khan defended her stance, citing the power dynamics between her and the party leadership as a reason for not seeking clarification from Mr Singh.
Tensions rose when Mr Jumabhoy requested that Ms Khan leave the courtroom to allow the defense to apply for her impeachment.
He argued that Ms Khan’s 4 October 2021 message to Mr Singh, in which she sought guidance during a Parliament session, contradicted her claim of feeling confident in Mr Singh’s support after their 3 October meeting.
Deputy Attorney-General Ang Cheng Hock countered the impeachment request, asserting that the message was consistent with the overall context of Ms Khan’s testimony and that the court should consider the full circumstances of the trial.
Afternoon Session: Cross-Examination on Meeting with Party Leaders
After the lunch break, Mr Jumabhoy focused on Ms Khan’s meeting with WP leaders on 8 August 2021, questioning whether they had explicitly instructed her to maintain the lie.
Ms Khan confirmed being told to “take it to the grave,” but Mr Jumabhoy suggested that her answers were contradictory and that she had assumed the leaders’ intentions without seeking clarification.
The cross-examination then delved into Ms Khan’s police statement from 5 June 2022, with Mr Jumabhoy raising questions about Mr Singh’s alleged instructions to tell the truth and the accuracy of Ms Khan’s recollection of events.
During the later part of the day, Ms Khan was questioned about her hesitance to confront WP leaders during the second disciplinary panel meeting on 29 November 2021.
She explained that the power dynamics in the room, with Mr Singh, WP chairwoman Sylvia Lim, and vice-chairman Faisal Manap being “very powerful people,” made it difficult for her to speak out against them.
Mr Jumabhoy highlighted notes from the 29 November meeting, which showed Mr Singh asking Ms Khan, “Can’t lie, right?” While Ms Khan agreed that the notes seemed to place responsibility on her, she maintained her belief that the leaders had her best interests at heart.
The day concluded with Deputy Public Prosecutor Sivakumar Ramasamy requesting an hour to complete the re-examination of Ms Khan the following day before moving on to the next witness, Ms Loh Pei Ying, a former WP cadre and one of Ms Khan’s aides.
Ms Loh has also appeared in the COP hearing.
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