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In a significant court decision, Singapore's main political rival Pritam Singh has lost his appeal against a conviction of providing false statements to a legislative panel.

In February, Singh was fined S$14,000 for two charges related to his handling of former lawmaker Raeesah Khan, who had admitted to giving false testimony in parliament.

During a short hearing before a packed public gallery on Friday, the presiding judge ruled that the evidence presented justified Singh's conviction.

Reaction from the Accused

Singh, who heads 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. "Might as well get it done," he remarked to the press.

Despite the conviction, Singh retains his seat in parliament and affirmed his commitment to continue serving Singaporeans together with his colleagues.

The Underlying Saga

The controversy began in 2021 when Raeesah Khan asserted in parliament that she had seen police act inappropriately towards a sexual assault victim.

She later confessed her account was untrue, but stated during a parliamentary committee investigation that party leaders, such as Singh, had instructed her to "stick to the story" despite knowing it was a lie.

Khan has since stepped down from both the party and parliament. She was penalized S$35,000 for perjury and abusing her parliamentary privilege.

Judicial Reasoning

In February, the court determined that Singh's actions were "highly suggestive" that he did not want Khan to clarify her lie.

Singh, who maintained his innocence during the entire proceedings, countered that he had wanted to give Khan time to handle what was a delicate issue.

The Appeal Arguments

During the appeal hearing, Singh's legal counsel contended that the initial 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 "doing nothing" 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 attend to.

The prosecution, however, argued that Singh's inaction, coupled with other evidence, proved he never intended for Khan to come clean.

Wider Implications

Singh's case is significant as one of the rare criminal convictions against a current opposition parliamentarian.

Critics have previously accused Singapore's government of leveraging the courts to target its rivals—charges that the government have always rejected.

The Workers' Party is the sole rival group in Singapore's current parliament, where it occupies 12 out of 99 seats.