The Inspector General (IG) of the Malawi Police Service and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) have appointed Attorney General (AG) Honourable Frank Mbeta to contest a High Court Civil Division order that granted Honourable Richard Chimwendo Banda permission to pursue judicial review over his detention.
The AG has since filed a preliminary application in the High Court's Civil Division in Lilongwe, seeking to discharge the leave granted for judicial review proceedings and to set aside all interim reliefs obtained by Chimwendo Banda.
An inter partes hearing is scheduled for January 23, 2026. In his sworn statement, the AG argues that the Claimant had alternative remedies he failed to exhaust. Specifically, he notes that Chimwendo Banda could have invoked habeas corpus, a legal principle designed to directly and summarily challenge unlawful detention.
“This remedy is specifically designed for liberty grievances and is more appropriate than judicial review,” the AG contends. He further points out that Chimwendo Banda had already applied for bail in the High Court’s Criminal Division, which was set to deliver a ruling on January 20, 2026. Should that ruling have been unfavorable, the Claimant retained the right to appeal to the Supreme Court.
The AG also accuses Chimwendo Banda of suppressing material facts. He highlights that the Claimant failed to disclose a Notice of Delivery of Ruling issued by the Criminal Division on January 13, 2026, which confirmed that the bail ruling would be delivered on January 20. Instead, Chimwendo Banda moved to the Civil Division on January 14 to seek judicial review, without revealing these details.
In his application to discharge the judicial review order, the AG reminds the Court that Chimwendo Banda had also approached the Supreme Court, where he was returned. He argues that this crisscrossing between High Court divisions and the Supreme Court amounts to abuse of court processes, particularly given that the Claimant was properly before the High Court’s Criminal Division.
Chimwendo Banda is currently facing a charge of attempted murder.
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