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PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has ordered a RM 13.5 billion lawsuit from Puncak Niaga Holdings Bhd against former Menteri besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim of Selangor and the Selangor government for a full trial.
A three-member bench chaired by Judge Hanipah Farikullah allowed an appeal by Puncak Niaga to reverse a High Court decision to close the lawsuit against Abdul Khalid and the Selangor government.
The court held that the Superior Court judge was wrong.
However, the court dismissed Puncak Niaga’s appeal of the High Court’s decision to sue Khalid’s successor, Mohamed Azmin Ali. Puncak Niaga was ordered to pay the costs of 10,000 ringgit.
The court held that there was “a reasonable cause of action” against Abdul Khalid for embezzlement in public office.
The court also ruled that an issue on limitation under the Public Authorities Protection Act “required mature consideration at trial, as it is an important issue of law that needs to be further discussed.”
In the lawsuit filed in 2017, Puncak Niaga had claimed that Khalid and Azmin had abused their powers by threatening to have the federal government invoke the Water Utilities Industry Act of 2006 to force a takeover of the water industry. water services in Selangor.
The company claimed damages, interest and costs for lost business opportunities at home and abroad, totaling RM13.5 billion.
Abdul Khalid and the Selangor government requested to drop Puncak Niaga’s claim as he is not a public official as defined in various relevant laws.
