Ex-Malaysian PM Razak to record statement
Kuala Lumpur, May 22: Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak arrived at the national anti-corruption body headquarters here on Tuesday to record his statement in a 2015 scandal involving state investment company 1MDB.
Razak arrived at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's (MACC) Putrajaya office around 9.45 a.m. amid tight security, the star reported.
He was summoned to assist in the investigation regarding the SRC International, a subsidiary of 1MDB, which he had set up in 2009 after taking office.
It is alleged that he took hundreds of millions of dollars which were siphoned by his associates, Xinhua news agency reported quoting an MACC officer as saying.
Razak has consistently denied any wrongdoing related to 1MDB since the scandal erupted in 2015, but he replaced an attorney-general and several MACC officers to shut down an investigation.
The Malaysian Police last week seized a trove of cash, jewellery, and designer handbags from several premises related to Razak, including his private residence and luxury condominiums, as part of the corruption probe following the election.
Newly elected Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has vowed to hold Razak responsible if found guilty.
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Ex-CJI Chandrachud removed fear of law from political defectors, claims Sanjay Raut
Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday slammed former Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, alleging that he had removed the fear of the law from politicians who defected from parties in Maharashtra.
Raut claimed that by not deciding on the disqualification petitions, Chandrachud kept doors and windows open for defections.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader's statement comes after his party faced a severe drubbing in the state assembly elections, as it managed to clinch only 20 out of 95 seats it contested as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
The performance of the party's alliance partners was no better, with the Congress winning only 16 out of 101 seats and NCP (SP) getting only 10 out of 86 seats it contested.
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged, "He (Chandrachud) has removed the fear of the law from defectors. His name will be written in black letters in history."
Following the split in the undivided Shiv Sena in 2022, the party's faction headed by Uddhav Thackeray filed petitions in the Supreme Court on the disqualification of party MLAs who defected along with Eknath Shinde. The apex court put the onus on the assembly Speaker to decide on the disqualification petitions, which he did earlier this year, declaring the Sena bloc led by Shinde as the “real political party”.
Raut alleged that the results of the assembly election were pre-decided. If the then CJI had decided on the disqualification petitions on time, the outcome would have been different.
"We are sad but not disappointed. We will not leave the fight incomplete. Division of votes was also a factor, and the RSS played an important role in the election. The poisonous campaign impacted us negatively," he said.
He said the swearing-in ceremony for the new government should be held in neighbouring Gujarat.
Meanwhile, in his weekly column "Rokhthok" in the party mouthpiece "Saamana", the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader claimed that it was time to offer condolences to the Election Commission, which turned a blind eye to the use of money power.
"The courts have been in the ICU for a long time," he alleged.
