Court orders Perak exco Sivanesan to pay RM3,000 in defamation case

TAPAH: Perak executive councillor A. Sivanesan has been ordered by the High Court to pay RM3,000 in costs to former Bagan Dalam assemblyman Satees Muniandy in a defamation case. The decision was made after Satees' application to transfer the suit to the Butterworth Sessions Court, where the court agreed that the Sessions Court had jurisdiction and Butterworth was the appropriate forum due to Satees' residence.

Sivanesan accused Satees of defaming him through a TikTok video uploaded on June 8 last year, claiming the video portrayed him as unfit for public office and used the Tamil word for drunkard to describe him. The former councillor is seeking an injunction, removal of the video, damages, and retractions and apologies in Tamil-language newspapers, as well as an apology video on TikTok.

Satees stated that he uploaded the video following a dispute over a government circular regarding new Hindu temples on state land, which he claimed would be halted for five years before being cancelled. Sivanesan argued that the state government's decision was only temporary. Satees thanked his legal team following the court's ruling.