KUALA LUMPUR: Senator S. Nallakaruppan, once a friend and tennis partner of Anwar Ibrahim when he was Deputy Prime Minister and later, told the High Court on Thursday that he declined to accept an appointed vice-presidency with the latter’s Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) because he feared it may be removed from him.

“I wanted to contest to see if I could win the vice-presidency and how my political career would go from there,” he said when asked by lawyer Shafee Abdullah. “If I took the appointment, PKR can always remove me.”

Shafee is representing Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin in a RM100 million defamation lawsuit filed by Anwar.

Nallakaruppan told the court that he was not angry when Anwar told him to withdraw from the 2007 Ijok by-election.

“If I was sad, I would not follow PKR to the Ijok ceramah during the campaign period,” he said in response to a question from Anwar’s lawyer, Latheefa Koya.

He disclosed that he was only angry when Anwar told him to withdraw from the contest for a PKR vice-presidency.

“That was when our misunderstanding begun,” he explained. “But now it is OK.”

That remark drew laughter from the crowd, including Anwar himself.

Earlier, former PKR Youth Secretary Lokman Noor Adam continued his testimony.

He told the court he rejoined Umno in 2007, three years after he left PKR.

“Returning to Umno was not an act of betrayal (to PKR),” he said, responding to a question by Latheefa who reminded him that he had been sacked by Umno.

He pointed out that he had been with Umno and PKR. “Of course, whatever Umno is doing needs to be repaired, but it (Umno) is far better than PKR,” he added.

PKR was not suitable as the government, he said. “I will do anything to prevent PKR becoming the government.”

Lokman told the court on Wednesday that PKR president Wan Azizah Wan Ismail sacked him for criticizing the party.

The hearing continues on Friday before Judicial Commissioner Azizul Azmi Adnan.

Assemblyman Ishak Ismail will take the witness stand.