KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 15 — Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s defence team argued that his accuser is a puppet who was coached to go “doctor shopping” for medical evidence favourable to the prosecution, as his sodomy trial drew to a close today.

The opposition leader’s lawyers told a courtroom packed wall-to-wall with his supporters that Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, a former aide, was the “puppet” in a sordid play directed by former Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan.

The defence said Mohd Saiful, 26, was the star witness on whom the prosecution’s entire case rested.

“In this sordid episode, the puppeteer is SAC Rodwan and by extension behind Rodwan is Tan Sri Musa Hassan, the director. The puppet is Saiful.

“One plausible view is he was well advised by SAC Rodwan on 24th June 2008 to use a plastic instrument to cause injury to his anus — to make it seem consistent with proof of penetration,” defence lawyer Sankara Nair told the court, referring to former Malacca police chief Datuk Mohd Rodhwan Mohd Yusof.

Anwar’s team has repeatedly maintained that the sodomy charge was a political conspiracy by the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition against the opposition politician to keep him out of the race to take Putrajaya.

“This is why Saiful, after attempting to injure his anus with a plastic, did not go to HKL straight away to make the allegations but instead went doctor shopping such as Pusrawi and later HKL, with a view to first ascertain whether he succeeded in causing some injury,” Sankara added.

They noted Mohd Saiful only filed a police complaint on June 28, four days after meeting the police officer.

“Saiful was asked to find an opportunity to be seen or to be in contact with DSAI on a possible one-to-one situation to be able to make the allegation and being asked to go to unit 1151 Desa Damansara condo became the opportune moment and he seized it,” Sankara said.

In their final argument, the defence lawyers highlighted Mohd Saiful’s incongruous conduct as a victim of violent sexual assault, as he claimed.

They pointed out Mohd Saiful had not filed a complaint with the police immediately after alleging he was forcefully violated by Anwar at the swanky Desa Damansara condominium here.

They highlighted that Mohd Saiful had a 20-minute chat with his alleged perpetrator over curry puffs and coffee after the alleged act and had taken a few days before filing medical and police complaints.

They argued that Mohd Saiful had adopted the same “modus operandi” at both Pusrawi Hospital and Hospital Kuala Lumpur by complaining first about pain in passing motion and later alleging sodomy and claiming his anus had been penetrated by a “plastic” object.

The lawyers argued that their theory also gelled with Mohd Saiful’s claim to have used a lubricant, KY Jelly, after the Pusrawi doctor appeared to find no injury to the anus.

The defence said the prosecution had the legal burden to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt and had failed, and urged the judge to acquit and discharge Anwar.

High Court judge Datuk Mohd Zabidin Mohd Diah set January 9 to deliver his decision.