Anwar’s defense team made the claim while urging the High Court to acquit him of sodomizing a former aide.

Prosecutors wrapped up their case last month, paving the way for the court to decide whether to dismiss the charge or instruct the defense to call its witnesses.

Anwar faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted of sodomy, a crime in Muslim-majority Malaysia. He claims the government fabricated the charge to hobble the opposition, but authorities deny any conspiracy.

Anwar’s top attorney, Karpal Singh, told the court Monday that Anwar’s accuser falsely testified that the opposition leader made him have sex in a Kuala Lumpur apartment in 2008.

The 25-year-old Saiful Bukhari Azlan was a young man and “strong enough to fend off the alleged overtures of (Anwar) in the bedroom, but he did not do so” in his version of events, Singh said. Anwar’s team has previously said the politician was meeting with other people at another apartment in the building during the time that Saiful claims the incident happened.

“No amount of corroboration, medical or otherwise, can salvage the prosecution case, which is doomed to fail,” Singh said, adding that Saiful should be charged with perjury.

Prosecutors were expected to present their rebuttal later Monday.

The prosecution’s case hinges on Saiful’s testimony and semen found on his body that allegedly matches DNA from items that Anwar had in his possession. Anwar has refused to voluntarily give DNA samples, saying he fears police will tamper with them.

Another of Anwar’s lawyers, Sankara Nair, argued Monday there were technical irregularities in the medical examination of Saiful and the method in which authorities obtained the items from Anwar.

Anwar, a married 63-year-old with six children, lost his post as deputy premier in 1998 on charges of sodomizing his family’s ex-driver and trying to cover up his actions, which he denied. He was freed from prison in 2004 when a court quashed the sodomy conviction. He led an opposition alliance to unprecedented gains in 2008 elections.

Anwar has also recently battled allegations that he was filmed having sex with an unidentified woman. Two former government politicians and a businessman leaked a sex video they claim featured Anwar to several journalists, but most of the footage has not been publicly circulated.