PUTRAJAYA: The lawyers to the developer involved in the Seafield Sri Maha Mariamman temple issue hired thugs that led to the riots, says Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
The Home Minister said police investigations revealed that the leader of the group which instigated the conflict was handed RM150,000 by the lawyers, which was used to pay the thugs involved from RM150 to RM300 each.
“Because they hired Malays to ‘take care of things’ at a Hindu temple, you can imagine the reaction it would trigger.
“As an example, imagine what would happen if you send Hindus to take care of a mosque?” said Muhyiddin at a press conference here on Wednesday (Nov 28).
Muhyiddin said the two lawyers who paid the thugs were among the 21 arrested by the police.
In a statement Monday (Nov 26), One City refuted allegations that it was behind the temple scuffle.
It said allegations that it had orchestrated the incident were malicious lies, and that the company condemned both acts of violence and insinuations that it would resort to “such despicable acts”.
“Most importantly, One City is committed to adhering to the rule of law in addressing the temple which is sitting on its land,” the developer said in its statement. – the star
Developer’s Malay guards blamed for temple fracas
PUTRAJAYA: An investigation by police into Monday’s attack on the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Subang Jaya has zeroed in on a group of Malays hired by the company which owned the temple land, the government revealed today.
Home Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said police discovered that the lawyer for One City Development, who was to take back its land following a consent judgment in 2014, had paid the guards RM150,000 to “control” the situation at the temple on Monday, the day an attack by an unknown mob led to follow-up violence the next day.
“Around 50 people were hired for this and they were each paid between around RM150 and RM300”.
Muhyiddin said the authorities had yet to determine if the lawyer was acting on the instruction of the developer or on his own volition.
“Our assumption is that he is a lawyer representing One City and he was given the money. I don’t believe the lawyer is so generous to give money to these people.
“There has to be a connection to the efforts to take control of the land. But the action of the lawyer was what caused all this. It is not right.”
He said two lawyers representing the developer are among 21 individuals detained by police to assist in investigations linked to the incident.
Muhyiddin again repeated the statements by government leaders who said the scuffle at the temple was not racial in nature.
He called for calm, adding that Malaysians should also not share fake news on social media.
“We have to focus on issues affecting the people like economic issues.”
He said the dispute over the temple land should not ruin race relations in the country. FREE MALAYSIA TODAY
THE STAR / FREE MALAYSIA TODAY
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