AKIPRESS.COM - Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim is to remain in prison after his request for a royal pardon was turned down.

Anwar was jailed for five years in February after a final appeal against a sodomy conviction was rejected.

He and his family - who filed for the pardon - have always maintained the long-running case was brought to keep him out of politics.

The pardon rejection means Anwar has lost his seat as an MP, reports BBC.

Malaysian media said that the Pardons Board made the decision on 16 March, though it is only now being reported. Anwar can still file for a judicial review.

Latheefa Koya, a lawyer for Anwar, told Reuters the family would appeal against the rejection and "we will be asking for further information as to what is going on".

Sodomy is illegal in Muslim-majority Malaysia, though very few people are ever prosecuted.

Anwar - who has already served one six-year term for another sodomy conviction that was later overturned - has always insisted he is innocent.

Anwar had widely been seen as the only real threat to the ruling coalition, which insists that his conviction was fair.

His People's Justice Party (PJP) has held a series of rallies to protest against his jailing.