High Court rejects former Kedah MB’s application to initiate contempt proceedings against Prime Minister

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here yesterday rejected former Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir’s ex-parte application for leave to initiate contempt proceedings against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

Mukhriz filed the application against Najib for allegedly issuing a statement through his blog relating to the defamation suit filed by Mukhriz against the Prime Minister’s Political Secretary Datuk Seri Tengku Sarifuddin Tengku Ahmad.

Judge Datuk Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim made the decision after finding that Mukhriz, in his application, had failed to establish a prima facie case of contempt of court against Najib.

In his brief judgment, Ahmad Zaidi said the statement posted by the prime minister on his blog on July 7 had nothing to do with Mukhriz’s defamation trial scheduled for July 13.

“I have read the prime minister’s blog and found nothing in the statement that referred to the statement of claims in the defamation suit filed by Mukhriz against Tengku Sarifudin.

“The court also found that there was no word in the statement that referred to the trial of a defamation case and those who read the blog will not conclude that the prime minister’s statement had touched on an ongoing defamation trial,” he said.

The judge said the court also found that the statement did not put pressure or pose a burden on the court to make its decision on the case.

“The plaintiff ( Mukhriz) has failed to prove that he deserves to be allowed to institute the proceedings.

The court hereby reject this application without cost,” he said.

On July 13, Mukhriz, who is also Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia ( PPBM) deputy president and Ayer Hitam assemblyman, filed the ex-parte application against Najib, claiming that the prime minister had issued a statement on his blog which allegedly referred to him ( Mukhriz) and saying that the statement was a contempt of court.

Lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla representing Mukhriz told reporters that they would file an appeal on the court’s decision. The prime minister was represented by lawyer Wan Azmir Wan Majid.

Meanwhile, the court set Oct 6 to hear another ex-parte application filed by Mukhriz against Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Ab Aziz Kaprawi.

On July 18, Mukhriz filed the application to initiate contempt proceedings against Ab Aziz for allegedly issuing a media statement on the defamation trial, which was published on Sinar Online on July 15. — Bernama