KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 6): The High Court today struck out the leave granted to the widow of private investigator P Balasubramaniam, A Santamil Selvi, and her children to initiate contempt proceedings against senior lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, former Tabung Haji chairperson Datuk Seri Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim and a doctor in Pantai Hospital, Dr S Ganesananthan.

As such, the hearing will not go ahead, and she was ordered to pay costs of RM5,000 to each of the defendants.

Judicial Commissioner Quay Chew Soon made the decision in his chambers today after hearing submission by the defendants following their application to set aside the leave, which was granted previously by High Court Judge Datuk Azimah Omar in April last year.

In this civil suit, the trio — Shafee, Azeez, and S Ganesananthan — were alleged to have played a role in stopping controversial carpet businessman Deepak Jaikishian from testifying in a trial.

"So basically he (Deepak) is a witness that cannot be believed, that is basically what the judge has round up. Therefore, there is too much doubt in the application by the applicant's — Santamil — attempt to be supported by Deepak whose evidence does not seem to support," Shafee told reporters today outside the courtroom, confirming the decision made by the judge.

Meanwhile, Santamil's lawyer Americk Sidhu told theedgemarkets.com that the judge was not satisfied by the evidence provided by the applicant to go ahead with the contempt proceedings, and therefore the leave should not have been given in the first place.

"So the judge is saying that the allegations were bare allegations — not supported by evidence, which I disagree with. I think there was sufficient evidence. And obviously because the first judge granted the order, there must have been sufficient evidence," he said.

"But as far as today is concerned, this is the end of the matter. I have to wait for instructions from the client on whether she wants to appeal against that order. That's another thing," Americk added.

Santamil, who filed the application on Oct 31, 2018, claimed that Shafee, who represented Deepak, had intentionally and falsely informed the court that Deepak was not able to attend court for questioning as the businessman was sick and "bleeding from both ends", and submitted a copy of Deepak's medical report.

Then High Court Judge Datuk Hue Siew Kheng set three dates in March last year for Deepak to testify but the businessman did not show up. Hue has since then retired as a judge.

The widow, who is a kindergarten teacher, claimed that Deepak had lodged a police report against Shafee, Azeez and the doctor for conspiring to prevent him from attending the court proceeding by producing a false medical report.

In her affidavit filed in support of her application to initiate the proceedings, Santamil claimed that Deepak was prevented from attending the court proceedings to prevent him from telling the truth about the involvement of former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in the suit she and her family had filed following their exile to India for five years.

The application was also supported by Deepak's affidavit, which claimed that he was under financial pressure and threat from Najib, as well as Baling member of Parliament Azeez, to refrain from revealing any information he was privy to in respect of the case involving Balasubramaniam and their subsequent exile from Malaysia.

Santamil and the children were seeking damages in excess of RM1 million, following losses of income after they went on exile in India after Balasubramaniam made a statutory declaration that the former premier knew Altantuya Shaariibuu in July 2008, only to be forced to retract it a day later.