Karpal’s sedition case to continue
Much to the chagrin of the DAP leader, the Court of Appeal rules that there is a prima facie case against him.
(Free Malaysia Today) – The Court of Appeal today allowed the appeal of the prosecution in the sedition case of DAP national chairman Karpal Singh.
Justice Ahmad Maarop, who led a three-man bench with Clement Alan Skinner and Mohamad Apandi Ali, delivered a unanimous judgment that the prosecution had a prima facie case which was read for over two and a half hours.
“The respondent did not dispute saying the words which are deemed as seditious,” he said.
He added that Karpal’s statement was considered seditious as it made the people feel hatred against the sultan and belittled the sultan.
“Freedom of speech does not provide immunity,” stressed Ahmad.
The case would now be heard on Feb 9 at the Kuala Lumpur High Court. The Court of Appeal reserved its judgment on the case in July last year.
The three judges reserved the judgment then because they had to go through lengthy submissions from both the appellants and Karpal.
Karpal is alleged to have uttered seditious remarks against Perak Sultan, Sultan Azlan Shah, when he told the press then that Article 160 of the Federal Constitution allowed litigants to take heads of state to court by way of judicial review since they are part of “public authority”.
He is alleged to have said this at his office during a press conference in Kuala Lumpur on Feb 6, 2009.
Karpal said the removal of then Perak menteri besar Nizar Jamaluddin can be questioned in the court of law.
He was charged under Sections 3(1) (a), 3 (1) (d), 4(1)(b) of the Sedition Act.
In June 2010, the High Court ruled out the case resulting in the prosecution team to appeal with the Court of Appeal.
