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Hri Kumar Nair

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Hri Kumar Nair
SC
Judge of the High Court of Singapore
Incumbent
Assumed office
2 January 2023
Appointed byHalimah Yacob
Deputy Attorney-General of Singapore
In office
1 March 2017 – 2 January 2023
Serving with Lionel Yee (Jan. 2017 - Jan. 2023)
Tai Wei Shyong (Jan. 2021 - Jan 2023)
Ang Cheng Hock (Oct. 2022 - Jan 2023)
Appointed byTony Tan
Member of Parliament
for Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC
(Thomson)
In office
7 May 2006 – 11 September 2015
Preceded byLeong Horn Kee (PAP)
Succeeded byChee Hong Tat (PAP)
Personal details
Born (1966-06-16) 16 June 1966 (age 58)
Singapore
Political partyPeople's Action Party (2006–2015)
Alma materNational University of Singapore (LLB)

Hri Kumar Nair SC (born 16 June 1966) is a Singaporean lawyer and former politician who has been serving as Judge of the High Court of Singapore since 2023. A former member of the People's Action Party, he was the Member of Parliament representing the Thomson division of Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC between 2006 and 2015. He was also a former Deputy Attorney-General of Singapore between 2017 and 2023.

Education

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Nair attended National Junior College before graduating from the National University of Singapore in 1991 with a Bachelor of Laws degree.[1]

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Nair was called to the Singapore Bar in 1992.[1] He joined Drew & Napier and became a director of the firm.[1] He was appointed senior counsel in 2008.[2]

Nair was appointed as the deputy attorney-general (DAG) for a three-year term starting on 1 March 2017, followed by another three-year term extension commencing on 1 March 2020.[3] He has since resigned as a member of the People's Action Party as well as the director of Drew & Napier.[4] He was the first ex-lawmaker in Singapore to take on the role of a public prosecutor.[4]

Nair was involved with several high profile cases during his term as DAG, including the appeal of the City Harvest Church trial[5] and Tan Cheng Bock's constitutional challenge to the elected presidency in 2017. Nair, in his capacity as the DAG representing the government, was criticised by Tan for his comments in the High Court.[6] Nair was quoted to have said that Tan's motives "are purely selfish and he has shown no regard for the principle of multiracial representation which Parliament intended to safeguard".[7]

In November 2017, Nair appeared before the Court of Appeal to argue against the acquittal of Mohd Ariffan Mohd Hassan, who was accused of raping his lover's daughter. The court dismissed the appeal, issuing a landmark judgment setting out the criteria for bringing in fresh evidence applying to the prosecution.[8] In June 2018, Nair successfully argued the prosecution's appeal for the death penalty to be imposed on Chia Kee Chen, who murdered his wife's ex-lover Dexmon Chua.[9] In 2019, Nair led the prosecution team during the trial of Leslie Khoo Kwee Hock, who strangled his girlfriend Cui Yajie near Gardens by the Bay and burned her body in what was known as the "Gardens by the Bay murder" case.[10] Khoo was subsequently convicted of murder in July 2019, and the prosecution argued for him to be sentenced to life imprisonment, on the account that his actions did not warrant capital punishment since he did not exhibit any viciousness or blatant disregard for human life. The judge agreed, and imposed a life sentence on 19 August 2019.[11] Khoo appealed against his conviction and sentence, but later withdrew it.[12] Nair also acted for the prosecution in the appeal hearing of Roshdi Abdullah Altway, a drug trafficker who was sentenced to death in 2020 despite his defence of safekeeping the drugs and not for the purpose of trafficking. Roshdi was previously sentenced to hang in 1994 for murdering a Central Narcotics Bureau inspector before he escaped the gallows and re-sentenced to ten years' jail upon an appeal.[13][14]

In September 2020, Nair was appointed to conduct a prosecutorial review for a wrongful conviction case[15] of a domestic worker, Parti Liyani, who was wrongfully accused of theft.[16]

Nair begun serving as a Judge in the High Court from January 2, 2023, following his appointment by President Halimah Yacob[17]

Political career

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From 2006 to 2015, Nair was a member of parliament for Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC, holding the Thomson–Toa Payoh ward. He was once an advisor to the Bishan–Toa Payoh grassroots organisations.[18] He was appointed chairman of the Bishan–Toa Payoh Town Council from 2011 to 2015. He was succeeded by Chong Kee Hiong and the head of the Government Parliamentary Committees for Home Affairs and Law.[4]

Nair has spoken out in favour of the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code in Singapore, which criminalises homosexual sex.[19] He is known for criticising the opposition for not taking a stand on contentious issues[20] and for his criticisms of the Worker's Party's management of the Aljunied–Hougang Town Council.[21]

Nair retired from politics before the 2015 Singaporean general election, citing his wife’s diagnosis of lymphoma in 2012 as a factor.[18]

Directorships

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Nair has held several directorships.[1]

  • People’s Association Board of Management (1 January 2007 – 31 May 2011)
  • Bishan EC Pte Ltd (11 September 2008 – 21 February 2012)
  • Riviera Properties Pte. Ltd. (23 August 2006 – 13 September 2012)
  • NTUC Choice Homes Co-Operative Ltd (23 August 2006 – 13 September 2012)
  • Media Development Authority of Singapore (1 January 2007 – 31 December 2012)
  • NTUC Foodfare Co-operative Ltd (21 September 2012 – 25 May 2015)
  • NTUC Income (3 September 2015 – 2017)

Personal life

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Nair is the youngest of nine children in his family. His first name is pronounced and was originally intended to be spelt as "Hari"; the current spelling is a result of a typing error in the original copy of his birth certificate that was never rectified.[22] His wife is a partner of Ernst & Young.[23][better source needed] His only child, a daughter, was born in 2006 or 2007.[24]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Hri Kumar Nair, SC" (PDF). Drew & Napier.
  2. ^ "Six appointed Senior Counsel at opening of Legal Year 2008". Channel NewsAsia.[permanent dead link‍]
  3. ^ "3 new High Court appointments and new deputy Attorney-General: PMO". The Straits Times. 16 February 2017.
  4. ^ a b c Ng, Kelly (17 February 2017). "Incoming Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar no longer a party member: PAP". Today. Singapore.
  5. ^ Ng Huiwen (1 August 2017). "City Harvest case: Kong Hee, with white hair and crew cut, in good spirits as criminal reference hearing begins". The Straits Times. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Tan Cheng Bock hits out at Hri Kumar for 'highly inflammatory' comments over EP challenge". Today. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
  7. ^ "Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar's comments 'highly inflammatory': Tan Cheng Bock". Yahoo! News Singapore. 8 July 2017. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
  8. ^ "Apex court upholds acquittal of man accused of sexually assaulting, raping lover's teen daughter". Today. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  9. ^ "IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE - [2018] SGCA 30" (PDF).
    - Lum, Selina (28 June 2018). "Man to hang for 'brutal' murder of wife's ex-lover". The New Paper. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  10. ^ "Gardens by the Bay murder: Accused says he had many girlfriends, but victim not one of them". CNA. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  11. ^ Lum, Selina (19 August 2019). "Gardens by the Bay murder trial: Leslie Khoo sentenced to life imprisonment for killing lover, burning her body". The Straits Times. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
    - "Public Prosecutor v Khoo Kwee Hock Leslie" (PDF). Supreme Court Judgements. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  12. ^ Lam, Lydia (24 September 2019). "Gardens by the Bay murderer to appeal against conviction, life imprisonment sentence". Channel NewsAsia. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  13. ^ "Roshdi bin Abdullah Altway v Public Prosecutor [2021] SGCA 103". Supreme Court judgements. 11 November 2021.
  14. ^ "Man who escaped gallows in 1994 for killing CNB officer to hang for heroin trafficking". The Straits Times. 3 November 2020.
  15. ^ "The curious case of the maid, the business tycoon and the pink knife". The Straits Times. 13 September 2020.
  16. ^ Wong Pei Ting (9 September 2020). "Attorney-General Lucien Wong not involved in prosecution, review of case of CAG chairman's former maid: AGC". Today. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
    - Jessie Lim (10 September 2020). "A-G not involved in ex-maid's case, recuses himself from review". The Straits Times.
    - "A-G Lucien Wong not involved in ex-maid Parti Liyani's case, has recused himself from review which deputy A-G Hri Kumar will lead: AGC". 9 September 2020.
    - "Parti Liyani's case: Attorney-General Lucien Wong not involved in prosecution; review led by Hri Kumar, says AGC". Channel News Asia. 9 September 2020. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
  17. ^ "New deputy attorney-general appointed; Hri Kumar to become High Court judge". Today. 26 September 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  18. ^ a b Yong, Charissa (12 August 2015). "Hri Kumar Nair: My wife's illness made me refocus my priorities". The Straits Times. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
  19. ^ "Raise level of debate on sexuality issues: MP Nair". The Straits Times. 18 February 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
  20. ^ "Hri Kumar hits out at WP again for sitting on the fence". Today. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
  21. ^ "Why the silence on basic questions about AHPETC accounts? Hri Kumar asks". Channel NewsAsia. 20 August 2015. Archived from the original on 11 September 2017. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
  22. ^ Jonas, Patrick (17 December 2010). "How Hari became Hri". AsiaOne. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  23. ^ "LinkedIn". LinkedIn.
  24. ^ "Hri Kumar Nair: My wife's illness made me refocus my priorities". The Straits Times. 12 August 2015. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
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