Singapore's PIO Oppn leader charged with lying to Parliament

Singapore's Indian-origin Leader of Opposition, Pritam Singh, was on Tuesday charged with lying under oath to a parliamentary committee.

Standing in the dock on Tuesday, the 47-year-old opposition politician, who was unrepresented, pleaded not guilty to the two charges under Section 31(q) of the Parliament (Privileges, Immunities and Powers) Act and claimed trial.

If convicted, he may be jailed for up to three years or fined up to SGD 7,000 per charge.

He requested a four-week adjournment to engage a lawyer.

A pre-trial conference has been scheduled for April 17, according to media reports.

According to chargesheets, Singh falsely testified on December 10, 2021, that after a meeting with fellow WP members Khan, Sylvia Lim and Faisal Manap on August 8, 2021, he wanted Khan to tell Parliament that what she told MPs on August 3, 2021, was untrue.

He is also accused of falsely testifying on December 10 and December

Singh, the Secretary-General of the Workers' Party (WP), is accused of falsely testifying at the Committee of Privileges hearings involving former Member of Parliament Raeesah Khan

15, 2021, that when he spoke to Khan on October 3, 2021, he wanted her to admit to having lied in

Parliament.

Khan's case came to light in 2021 when she admitted to lying in Parliament over a rape case that she alleged was mishandled by the police.

Her conduct was referred to Parliament's Committee of Privileges. After a series of hearings, the committee recommended that Singh be referred to the public prosecutor for further investigations and possible criminal proceedings over his conduct before the committee.