The Suva Magistrate’s Court is awaiting comprehensive submissions from both parties involved in the case against former Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum and former Supervisor of Elections Mohammed Saneem. Sayed-Khaiyum was excused from attending court proceedings yesterday due to medical issues, while Saneem appeared before Magistrate Yogesh Prasad.
The court is considering an application from the State to consolidate the cases against the two individuals, as well as a separate application from Saneem questioning the legitimacy of the charges brought against him, which were authorized by former acting director of Public Prosecutions John Rabuku.
Defense attorney Devanesh Sharma argued that their application should be prioritized, as it could help the court decide whether the other two cases should be addressed at all. He referenced a Supreme Court ruling from April concerning Saneem and Sayed-Khaiyum’s previous request to intervene, which advised them to wait for a resolution on that matter as it could provide additional options.
Sharma noted that the Magistrate’s Court has the authority under Section 265 of the Criminal Procedure Act to take the matter into consideration. He warned that if the application were transferred to the High Court, it would delay Sayed-Khaiyum’s case and prolong the overall proceedings.
Acting Director of Public Prosecutions Nancy Tikoisuva represented that this matter is of a judicial and constitutional nature, which falls under the High Court’s jurisdiction. Magistrate Prasad concurred, stating that even his ruling could be subject to appeal at this level. Tikoisuva emphasized that the Magistrate’s Court does not possess the authority to address the issue and mentioned that the inclusion of this matter during consolidation would necessitate some discussion regarding Section 290 in the ruling.
Magistrate Prasad instructed both parties to clarify the issues they intend to address in their submissions and requested that their responses remain strictly legal without any unnecessary elaboration or affidavits. The deadline to submit their documents is set for September 17, with a subsequent hearing scheduled for September 25 at 11:30 am.