Thursday, April 29, 2021

Perlis mufti wins defamation suit, awarded RM150k damages

 


The Shah Alam Sessions Court today ordered activist T Arunakirinathan to pay damages of RM150,000 to Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin over a defamatory statement he made against the mufti on Facebook three years ago.

Judge Ishak Bakri also ordered Arunakirinathan to pay cost of RM20,000 to Asri and interest of five percent a year starting from the date the suit was filed until the case was solved.

The media received the information on the case from the court’s e-filing website and from Azri’s lawyer, Meor Amir Meor Omar Baki. Arunakirinathan was represented by lawyer S Dyna Sri.

Ishak, in his judgment, also ordered Arunakirinathan to publish a public apology to Asri (above) in the newspapers of the mufti’s choice, as well as on his two Facebook accounts, and retract the two defamatory statements or any other postings which directly or indirectly referred to Asri.

The court also granted a permanent injunction to restraint Arunakirinathan from uttering, publishing or causing the publication of any defamatory statements against Asri, verbally or in writing.

On Feb 25, 2019, Asri filed the defamatory suit against Arunakirinathan over the latter’s Facebook postings on Nov 26 and 27, 2018, which among others claimed that Asri wanted to destroy temples and was involved in the kidnapping of a pastor.

- Bernama 

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