PUTRAJAYA, April 23 — The hearing of Damansara Member of Parliament Tony Pua Kiam Wee’s application for leave to appeal in the Federal Court against the appellate court’s decision to uphold the withdrawal of Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s defamation lawsuit against him (Pua) has been rescheduled to July 22.

Based on information posted on the court website, the hearing was initially scheduled to be heard today.

Pua’s lawyer Tan Cheng Long said the court rescheduled the hearing to July 22 during a case management conducted through e-Review on Monday (April 20) following extension of the movement control order (MCO).

Pua is seeking leave to appeal against the October 15, 2019, decision of the Court of Appeal which partly allowed his appeal.

The three-member Court of Appeal bench led by Justice Datuk Dr Hamid Sultan Abu Backer had allowed Pua to receive damages after the High Court in 2018 granted Najib’s application to withdraw his defamation suit against him (Pua) over the tabling of the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) (Amendment) Bill.

The appellate court also ordered the case to go back to the High Court for the assessment of damages.

The bench had also set aside the injunction obtained by Najib in his suit.

The Court of Appeal, however, upheld the High Court’s decision which allowed Najib to withdraw his suit against Pua.

The Kuala Lumpur High Court on July 30, 2018, allowed Najib to withdraw his suit against Pua despite the latter’s objection.

Najib sued Pua in his personal capacity, alleging that the latter had made defamatory statements against him in a two-minute and 21-second live video which was uploaded onto his official Facebook page.

Following the suit, the Kuala Lumpur High Court had on August 4, 2017, granted Najib an injunction to prevent Pua from continuing to make similar statements and air the video clip.

Pua failed in his appeal at the Court of Appeal on February 14, 2018, to lift the injunction order granted by the High Court to Najib.

Pua obtained leave from the Federal Court on June 20, 2018, to appeal pertaining to the injunction order.

The hearing of Pua’s appeal at the Federal Court against the injunction order is fixed on July 23. — Bernama