🔗 Share this article Judicial Body Upholds Guilty Verdict for Political Rival Pritam Singh Pritam Singh attended a court session in November to challenge his guilty verdict. In a notable legal ruling, Singapore's main political rival Pritam Singh has failed in his challenge against a conviction of providing false statements to a legislative panel. In February, Singh was ordered to pay S$14,000 for two offenses related to his management of former lawmaker Raeesah Khan, who had confessed to lying in parliament. During a brief hearing before a full public gallery on Friday, the presiding judge ruled that the evidence presented supported Singh's conviction. Leader's Response Singh, who leads the main opposition Workers' Party, expressed that he was "disappointed" with the ruling but accepted it "completely and unequivocally". He settled his fines at the court complex following the hearing. "It's best to settle this now," he commented to reporters. Despite the conviction, Singh retains his seat in parliament and affirmed his intention to continue serving Singaporeans alongside his party members. The Underlying Saga The entire episode originated in 2021 when Raeesah Khan asserted in parliament that she had witnessed police misbehave towards a sexual assault victim. She later confessed her anecdote was fabricated, but testified during a parliamentary committee investigation that party leaders, including Singh, had instructed her to "continue with the narrative" even though they were aware it was a lie. Khan has since stepped down from both the party and parliament. She was penalized S$35,000 for lying and abusing her parliamentary privilege. Court's Rationale In February, the court ruled that Singh's actions were "strongly indicative" that he did not want Khan to correct the falsehood. Singh, who maintained his innocence during the entire proceedings, countered that he had wanted to give Khan time to handle what was a sensitive issue. Points Contested During the appeal hearing, Singh's lawyer argued that the lower court had "ignored crucial pieces of evidence" in its original ruling. The defense also attempted to question the reliability of Khan and her assistants, who served as witnesses. When asked why Singh appeared to be "taking no action" to have Khan confess in the weeks following his discovery of her lie, his lawyer explained that he had other urgent professional and personal matters to manage. The state's attorneys, however, argued that Singh's lack of action, alongside other evidence, proved he never intended for Khan to come clean. Broader Context Singh's case is significant as one of the rare criminal convictions against a sitting opposition lawmaker. Observers have previously accused Singapore's government of using the judiciary to pursue its rivals—charges that authorities have always rejected. The Workers' Party is the sole rival group in Singapore's current parliament, where it occupies 12 out of 99 seats.