The High Court of Singapore has denied former transport minister S Iswaran’s request for the prosecution to supply written witness statements ahead of his upcoming graft trial. Justice Vincent Hoong ruled on July 19, 2024, following arguments from both sides concerning the obligations of the prosecution under the law.

Iswaran’s lawyer, Davinder Singh, contended that the prosecution should disclose “conditioned statements” in line with Section 214(1)(d) of the Criminal Procedure Code, which mandates the disclosure of relevant evidence before trial as part of pre-trial discovery. However, Deputy Attorney-General Tai Wei Shyong argued against this interpretation, maintaining that the prosecution is only required to produce such statements if they intend to use them during the trial.

In his ruling, Justice Hoong stated that the law’s wording is “clear and unambiguous,” and that the defense’s additional materials did not contribute to its interpretation. He noted that there is no requirement for the prosecution to file and serve witness statements unless they plan to introduce them in court. The judge added that it would be inappropriate to read the law as requiring the prosecution to collect statements from all intended witnesses.

Justice Hoong also pointed out that the prosecution had already provided adequate information regarding the charges, including a list of witnesses and their respective roles, alongside descriptions of the exhibits involved in the case. Therefore, Iswaran’s legal team failed to demonstrate how the lack of these conditioned statements would result in an injustice.

This decision follows a previous unsuccessful attempt by Singh to secure witness statements in June, which was also denied. Iswaran faces a total of 35 charges, including two counts of corruption related to receiving over S$403,000 in gifts as a public servant. The trial is set to begin on August 13, 2024, unless further applications or appeals are filed.