Kuala lumpur: The High Court here today dismissed an appeal by Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and his son, Datuk Mohd Nazifuddin, to stay bankruptcy proceedings against them. The proceedings were initiated by the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) following their failure to settle tax arrears of RM1.69 billion and RM37.6 million, respectively.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Judicial Commissioner Suhendran Sockanathan@Saheran Abdullah dismissed the appeal, noting that the court found no additional harm that would justify granting the stay. "In these circumstances, both appeals are dismissed with costs of RM7,000 each," said Suhendran.

On October 16, 2023, the Federal Court ruled that the former prime minister and his son must settle their outstanding taxes after dismissing their appeal to overturn the High Court's decision. Earlier, Suhendran stated that the merits of tax assessments fell under the jurisdiction of the Special Commissioner for Income Tax (SCIT), and the court's role was to facilitate the collection and recovery of income tax.

Suhendran noted that the claims by Najib and Nazifuddin regarding the issue of time limit, inaccurate calculation, and political donations are matters related to the merits of the tax appeal and should be decided by the SCIT. He emphasized that this aligns with the 'pay first, dispute later' formula under the Income Tax Act, aimed at facilitating tax collection.

Additionally, Suhendran dismissed the argument that the pending appeals before the SCIT should be a reason for adjournment, stressing that such appeals do not hinder or suspend the tax collection process. Meanwhile, lawyer Wee Yeong Kang, representing both appellants, said he was instructed to file an appeal against the court's decision today.

Najib and Nazifuddin are appealing against the High Court's decision allowing the IRB's application to enter a direct judgment in the tax arrears case against them. A direct judgment is a decision made by the court based on written submissions without calling witnesses to testify. Two separate High Courts granted the IRB's application for summary judgment to recover tax arrears from the father and son for the assessment years 2011 to 2017.

Both Najib and Mohd Nazifuddin subsequently lost their appeals to set aside these judgments at the Court of Appeal in September 2021. However, on May 10, 2022, the Federal Court granted them leave to appeal the matter further.