Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein is applying to strike out part ofDatuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's defence statement in his suit against Anwar over the sex video featuring a man resembling the Opposition Leader.
Counsel Sunil Abraham, representing Hishammuddin, told the High Court on Monday that his client wanted to strike out certain parts of Anwar's statement of defence.
Judge Datuk V.T. Singham set Aug 26 for case management and informed Sunil to file the application within this week.
Justice Singham also ordered Sunil to serve the application to Anwar's counsel by Aug 2. Counsel J. Leela is representing Anwar.
On Apr 26, Hishammuddin sued Anwar for defamation over an interview the Opposition Leader had with the media on March 22 after lodging a report denying that he was the man in the video, at the Dang Wangi police station, here.
Hishammuddin, 50, said the words were understood to mean that he was responsible for screening the video to a group of editors and journalists at Carcosa Seri Negara Hotel on March 21.
The minister said the words were also understood to mean that he had arranged for the screening of the video and plotted with the Prime Minister and the police top brass to have it done.
In his statement of defence, Anwar countered that the words uttered by him were published on an occasion of qualified privilege and published in the reasonable protection of his own legitimate interest as Opposition Leader.
Anwar also filed a counter-claim saying that Hishammuddin's words in his press conference on March 21, gave weight to the assertion by the three persons who exposed the video that the man featured in it was him (Anwar).
Hishammuddin, in his reply, said that Anwar had ill intentions in uttering malicious words which were later widely reported in the media and the Internet.
He said the words were not published in good faith and that the main motive of Anwar was to injure his reputation as a minister and politician.
