Tengku Adnan, accused of a RM1 million corruption case, was granted a conditional discharge when the prosecution said it did not wish to proceed because of “new developments”, later revealed to be a fresh investigation into complaints against a witness.

Malaysian Bar president Salim Bashir said the public prosecutor must provide valid reasons for his decision. “It is also very concerning that no time frame on further investigating this ‘new development’ has been provided,” he said.

He said the public had the right to know the detailed explanation behind the withdrawal of charges in matters of public interest.

Deputy public prosecutor Julia Ibrahim who applied for a conditional discharge to be granted to Tengku Adnan, said the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) needed to conduct further investigations.

“We are not sure how long MACC needs to investigate,” she said. A decision whether to proceed with the case would be made “after the new issue is resolved”.