Low Hop Bing JCA:

Appeals

[1] These two related appeals concern the appellant ("the plaintiff") and two witnesses only, but not the defendants. They arose from the concurrent decisions of the learned High Court judge and the learned registrar of the same court. Both of them had allowed the applications by two witnesses viz Tan Sri Aseh bin Haji Che Mat and Tan Sri Abdul Aziz bin Mohd Yusof to set aside the Writs of Subpoena Ad Testificandum ("the subpoenas") which were issued at the behest of the plaintiff to compel them to attend as witnesses.

[2] We had on 31 March 2009 dismissed the plaintiff's appeals. As leave to appeal was granted by the Federal Court on 9 September 2009, we now give our grounds.

Factual Background

[3] The plaintiff was arrested and subsequently put under restricted residence in the district of Kuala Lipis, Pahang for a period of two years commencing 23 February 1993, pursuant to an order issued by the Minister of Home Affairs, under s. 2(i) of the Restricted Residence Act 1933 (s. 2(i)).

[4] Subsequently, upon the plaintiff's representation, the Minister gave instructions for an inquiry to be conducted. The inquiry was chaired by the Ministry's Seni