Singapore’s Pritam Singh to take the stand after court ruling that he has a case to answer

Singapore’s opposition leader Pritam Singh will take the stand in his ongoing criminal trial, in which he is accused of lying to a parliamentary committee.

Singh, 48, has been embroiled in a controversy stemming from former Labor MP Raeesah Khan lying to parliament in August and October 2021 about accompanying a rape victim to a police station.

He faces two charges of giving false testimony under oath at parliamentary committee hearings held in December of the same year.

Before a packed courtroom on Tuesday, Singh told the court that he chose to testify after Deputy Chief District Judge Luke Tan ruled that the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence or a prima facie case to proceed with the trial.

Singh will have to speak under oath in court and be cross-examined by the prosecution.

The trial, the first of its kind in the city-state, which began on October 14, shook Singapore with the testimony of prosecution witnesses Khan, Labor Party stalwart Low Thia Khiang and former party volunteers, each of whom gave insight into the inner workings of the party. .