Updated 12.20pm

A court has ruled there is enough evidence for a corruption case to continue against the man believed to be the secret majority owner of Vitals Global Healthcare.

Magistrate Rachel Montebello said there was enough  prima facie grounds to commit Shaukat Ali Chaudhry and his wife to trial on indictment.

They face corruption and money laundering charges linked to the hospitals' privatisation deal that was annulled by a court last year.

Chaudhry and his wife Shaukat Aasia Parveen were last week charged with corruption, money laundering, and other crimes in connection with the Vitals deal to privatise three state hospitals.

Both had pleaded not guilty in the case presided by Magistrate Rachel Montebello.

Chaudhry’s son, Asad Ali, also stands accused of crimes in relation to the now-annulled hospitals' deal. He is being charged separately.

Prosecutors allege the family profited illegally from the deal, using Ali-controlled companies Mount Everest FZ LLC and Global Assets Holdings to do so.

Ali appeared as a representative of those two companies and pleaded not guilty to criminal charges on their behalf.

On Thursday Magistrate Montebello ordered the prosecution to produce records and statements of bank accounts of Switzerland-based companies linked to Chaudhry.

She said those were necessary to prove the charges of trading in influence, money laundering as well as the amounts allegedly involved in the financial transactions.

Other missing documents related to Steward's US-based parent company are required to identify the financial transactions between the company and Chaudhry. 

The court also ordered the prosecution to produce information, records and account details from the UAE related to the accused.

AG lawyers Francesco Refalo, Rebekah Spiteri and Shelby Aquilina together with Superintendent Hubert Cini and Inspector Wayne R Borg prosecuted. 

Lawyers Shazoo Ghaznavi and Jessica Formosa were defence counsel.