SINGAPORE: The Singapore Court of Appeal has rejected Malaysian death-row inmate Pannir Selvam Pranthaman’s bid for a stay of execution.
The stay was requested pending the outcome of disciplinary proceedings linked to a complaint Pannir Selvam made against a former lawyer.
In its judgment yesterday, a five-judge panel led by Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon said the court considered whether the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had unlawfully altered its execution scheduling policy.
“Thus, in the present case, it remains incumbent on the applicant to demonstrate the unlawfulness of the MHA’s alleged policy change. In our judgment, he has not succeeded in doing this,” the judgment read.
The court also rejected Pannir Selvam’s argument that the MHA’s policy distinguishes between prisoners, depending on whether their testimony is required in proceedings initiated by the state or by private parties.
Pannir Selvam was convicted by the High Court on May 2, 2017, for importing at least 51.84g of diamorphine into Singapore and was sentenced to the mandatory death penalty. His appeal was dismissed on Feb 9, 2018, and his clemency petition to the President of Singapore was rejected.
He was previously granted two stays of execution: the first in May 2019 to challenge the rejection of his clemency petition, and the second in February 2025, pending the determination of this application. -BERNAMA
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