Gani: It was the fairest thing to do

New Straits Times

"I can be very strict, but I don't think this is the right time to be," he said.

"When we exercise the law, we have to look at it fairly. It is my judgment that this is the fairest thing to do.

"We can't pinpoint who exactly did it or rather who was the one who 'threw the brick' at the person who was badly injured."

Policeman Dedi Abd Rani was hit on the head by a brick during an illegal assembly in Batu Caves on Nov 25.

The gathering was organised by the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf).

Gani said the 31 men were initially charged not because they were alleged to be Hindraf members but because they had committed an offence by participating in an illegal assembly.

"All the 31 men had signed letters opposing Hindraf and claimed they were not Hindraf members," he said after the court proceeding yesterday.

"They had also said they would never take part in any illegal assembly in the future."

Counsel A. Sivanesan said although not all the charges were dropped against 26 of the men, they were thankful that the prosecution had decided to withdraw one of the more serious charges of attempted murder.

"We had written representations to the A-G's Chambers and they have decided to drop the charges of attempted murder after considering the mitigation," he said.

"We believe the sentence will be lenient as everyone knows the surrounding factors which led to the Nov 25 incident," he said, referring to the punishment to be meted out by the court on Dec 27 for illegal assembly and causing mischief.

Sivanesan said he would be applying for the 26 men to be bound over as most of them were first-time offenders.

"We feel sorry for the family of the police officer who was hurt, but there was no reason for policemen to use tear gas during the incident."

"There were quite a number of the public who were also injured."

He said many of those charged had lost their jobs as a result of their detention.

S. Ramesh Kumar, one of the five students freed of all the three charges against them, said his experience of being held in remand for more than 20 days was an unforgettable one.

"I'm just thankful that this episode is over," he said.

Another student, A. Vasantarao, 19, also said he was happy to be released.