Rafizi’s defamation conviction overturned
> Court rules charge failed to show manner in which public peace breached
SHAH ALAM: Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli’s ( pix) conviction for criminal defamation against Umno last year was quashed by the High Court yesterday.
In allowing Rafizi’s appeal against his conviction last year, High Court judge Datuk Ghazali Cha said the prosecution’s charge was defective.
“The key element to a charge under Section 504 of the Penal Code is proving the intent of the appellant. However, the charge itself had failed to state how the accused had provoked a breach of peace from his interview,” he said.
He added the subsequent reaction from Selangor Umno members was only to lodge a police report against Rafizi and nothing on incidents that could provoke public peace.
Ghazali also dismissed the prosecution’s bid to increase Rafizi’s sentence and ordered a RM1,800 fine paid by Rafizi to be refunded. The PKR lawmaker was fined at the Petaling Jaya sessions court after he was found guilty of criminal defamation against Umno members in a statement he made in 2014.
He had been accused of committing the offence in an article titled “Analyst: Will Rafizi quit if Selangor not toppled?” which was published in the nowdefunct news portal, fz.com and published by The Edge Financial Daily in 2014. Rafizi had allegedly insinuated that Selangor Umno members were behind religious attacks in Selangor in 2014.
This prompted several Umno Youth leaders in Selangor to lodge a police report against him, claiming they had been upset by his remarks.
Deputy public prosecutor Iskandar Ahmad appeared for the prosecution while counsel Gobind Singh Deo represented Rafizi.