The Shah Alam High Court will rule on Wednesday on the admissibility of allegedly incriminating evidence against second accused Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar in the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder trial.

Judge Mohd Zaki Md Yasin spent this morning listening to submissions from the defence and prosecution.

However, he reserved judgment until Wednesday, telling the lawyers that he has to hear another murder case.

"(That) lawyer has insisted vehemently that his client's case be heard immediately. He even cited Article 5 of the Federal Constitution (personal liberties and unlawful detention)," he explained.

"The main reason being that his client is sick. The accused has been in remand since 2004. With that I have decided to hear his case at 2pm today and the whole day tomorrow."

The proceedings today were based on last week's developments when Deputy Public Posecutor Tun Majid Tun Hamzah sought the admissibility of testimony by police officer Zulkarnain Samsudin, under Section 8 of the Evidence Act 1950. It states that words that accompany conduct are relevant evidence.

Under examination, Zulkarnain, 34 - who testified that he had taken Sirul to the crime scene on Nov 6 last year - had said: "(Sirul) can point out the place where the Mongolian woman was blown up."

Arguments put forward

However, lawyer Kamarul Hisham Kamaruddin spent more than an hour arguing that Section 8 cannot only be used because (his client) Sirul's conduct was 'inextricably woven' into his statement.

"If there was a verbal statement made contemporaneous with a conduct or an act and it's inextricably bound together, it is admitted together as a 113 Criminal Procedure Code (admission) statement," he said.

He argued that using Section 8 to admit Sirul's alleged statement is akin to using the back door and it should be excluded as hearsay evidence.

Tun Majid countered that Section 8 should be given the same treatment as Section 27 of the Act.

Under Section 27, it must be proven in court whether or not information leading to the discovery of crime scene given by a accused person under police custody is a confession of guilt.

"Section 8 should have equal footing with Section 27 because such statement accompanying the action would explain the conduct or else it would have no meaning at all," he argued.

"The statement made by Sirul at the same place and the same time of the conduct (of pointing out the murder spot) should be admitted."

Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, 30, and Sirul, 35, are charged with the murder of the Mongolian national while political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, 47, is charged with abetting them.

Prosecutors say Abdul Razak Baginda, 47, planned her killing and ordered two police officers to carry it out.

Altantuya was killed by "probable blast-related" injuries in a clearing in Puncak Alam, Shah Alam after she was driven away from outside Abdul Razak's house in mid-October.

All three face the death penalty if found guilty.