THE Bar Council wants a nine-member bench formed by retired federal court judges to hear its challenge to appointments of Chief Justice Md Raus Sharif and Court of Appeal president Justice Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin.

Malaysiakini reported the hearing for the case has been set on March 2

Former Bar Council president Steven Thiru said they already had informed Chief Judge of Malaya Ahmad Maarop via a letter but he had not responded, so they will submit a notice of motion to the federal court next week.

“The Bar has also proposed several retired judges to possibly hear this case but to make sure it is independent… those who had commented on the issue would not be on the list,” he was reported as saying.

He added former federal court judge Gopal Sri Ram and former chief justice Abdul Hamid Mohamad were not on the list because they have commented on the issue before.

Thiru also said the appointment of the judges would be made according to Article 122 (1A) of the federal constitution.

“We do not want the present federal court and Court of Appeal judges to hear the reference questions to ensure independence in this case as this concerns the top two posts.

“We do not want the present crop of judges to be in an embarrassing situation,” he was reported saying.

Zulkefli and Raus are past the age limit for a federal court judge. Their appointments have sparked controversy and prompted the Malaysian Bar to vow a legal challenge to the constitutionality of the appointments.

Raus was appointed Malaysia’s 14th chief justice on April 1, taking over from Arifin Zakaria, who retired on March 31 upon reaching the age limit of 66 years and six months. – February 15, 2018.