KUALA LUMPUR, 14 Oct 2008: The High Court here today dismissed an injunction obtained by MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu restraining the Tamil daily, Malaysia Nanban, and three others from publishing further alleged libellous articles about him.
Counsel for the four defendants, S Arumugam, told reporters that Justice Datuk Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat dismissed the injunction with costs in chambers on grounds that Samy Vellu had failed to satisfy the court on why he needed the injunction.
The other three defendants are the daily’s editor, M Maryanandy, journalist M Yogalinggam and printer Aslita Sdn Bhd.
Meanwhile, Tengku Maimun allowed another defendant, former Klang MIC division chief P Thiagarasan’s application to lift the interim injunction obtained by Samy Vellu on 1 Aug which restrained him from publishing further alleged libellous articles about him, until the disposal of his suit.
The court fixed 17 Dec to hear submissions from both sides on a permanent injunction.
Samy Vellu filed a suit against the five on 3 July seeking RM10 million in damages for libel and other reliefs deemed fit by the court.
In his statement of claim, he said Yogalinggam had written an article published in the daily on 25 June which contained libellous elements which had damaged his reputation among the Indian community and affected his credibility and good name.
Yogalinggam, Maryanandy, Penerbitan Sahabat and Aslita Sdn Bhd, in their statements of defence, said that they had no specific knowledge of the whole content of the statement in the article except that it was made in an interview with Yogalinggam.
They claimed qualified privilege, saying that the article was printed and published bona fide and with no malice. — Bernama
