The Court of Appeal has set April 7 to hear Wan Ji Wan Hussin’s bid to refer the issue of the Sedition Act 1948’s validity to the apex court.
When contacted by the media, the independent preacher’s counsel Sangeet Kaur Deo confirmed the new hearing date when the Court of Appeal vacated the initial one fixed for today.
The lawyer said the postponement was allowed as she had just taken over the matter following Wan Ji’s previous lawyer, Ramkarpal Singh, becoming a deputy minister.
Wan Ji's referral bid seeks for the Federal Court to look into the constitutional issue of the Act in order to bolster the PKR member’s main appeal to reduce his one-year jail sentence over a 2014 sedition case linked to the Selangor sultan.
The main sedition appeal is still pending before the Court of Appeal.
Wan Ji (above) is appealing against the Shah Alam High Court’s order on July 9, 2020, which allowed the prosecution’s cross-appeal to increase his jail term to one year following his sedition conviction.
The charge was over a 2012 Facebook post about Selangor ruler Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah.
The High Court allowed the prosecution’s appeal to increase the initial nine-month jail sentence meted out by the Sessions Court.
There is a stay against the Shah Alam High Court ruling, pending his appeal to the Court of Appeal.
Wan Ji, who was a former aide to ex-finance minister Lim Guan Eng, was charged under Section 4(1)(c) of the Sedition Act, which carries a maximum jail term of three years as well as a maximum fine of RM5,000.
The High Court’s ruling attracted renewed calls for the then Pakatan Harapan administration to abolish the Sedition Act.
The coalition's youth wing called for the release of Wan Ji and for then attorney-general Tommy Thomas to explain why the prosecution appealed for a heavier sentence.
As the initial sedition decision originated from the Shah Alam Sessions Court, his first appeal was heard at the Shah Alam High Court. The Court of Appeal is the final avenue for Wan Ji to appeal. - Mkini
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