WP chief Pritam Singh fails in bid to have case heard in High Court

No strong public interest considerations to transfer case from State Courts, says judge

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Opposition leader and Workers' Party (WP) chief Pritam Singh has failed in his attempt to have his upcoming trial heard in the High Court, after he sought to compare his case to that of former transport minister S. Iswaran.

Singh, 48, faces two charges of lying to a parliamentary committee that was convened in November 2021 to look into the lying controversy involving his party's former MP Raeesah Khan.

On Sept 9, Justice Hoo Sheau Peng dismissed Singh's application for his case to be transferred from the State Courts to the High Court.

She said Singh's case was different from that of Iswaran and there were no strong public interest considerations in Singh's case that warranted a departure from the norm.

"Any departure from the usual criminal process carries the risk of undermining public trust and confidence in the administration of justice, as it breeds the perception that special treatment is being accorded to an accused person," she said.

Justice Hoo added: "All accused persons (including political officeholders and former political officeholders) are to be treated equally.

In this case, there is no reason to depart from the ordinary course of justice, which is for the trial to be heard in the State Courts." The dismissal of Singh's applications means that his State Courts trial, which has been slated to be heard over 16 days between Oct 14 and Nov 13, will go on as scheduled.

Singh, who was represented by Mr Andre Jumabhoy, had applied for his case to be transferred to the High Court on grounds that it was "expedient for the ends of justice".

The prosecution, represented by Deputy Attorney-General Ang Cheng Hock, objected to his application.