International   

Plea for Hindraf leaders’ release rejected

SINGAPORE: The habeas corpus petitions for the release of five leaders of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), all being held without trial under Malaysia’s Internal Security Act, were rejected by the High Court in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.

Hindraf is planning to appeal against the verdict.

Judicial Commissioner Zainal Azman Ab Aziz ruled that the detention orders were in conformity with the law. The five — P. Uthayakumar, V. Ganapati Rao, M. Manoharan, R. Kengadharan, and T. Vasanthakumar — had organised a protest rally in Kuala Lumpur last November, focussing attention on the “marginalisation” of the ethnic Indian minority and demanding equal opportunities for the community. A key argument in support of the petition was that the five were denied the right of defending themselves during what the defence regarded as a mandatory pre-detention investigation by the police in a formal manner.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

PML (N) not to join government
Plea for Hindraf leaders’ release rejected
Indian origin man convicted of terrorism
Hillary team releases Obama turban photo
U.S. assumes satellite’s fuel tank destroyed
Air ban during Chinese Parliament session
Hunt on for suspected treasure
Chess volume’s Da Vinci secret

Copyright © 2008, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu