KUALA LUMPUR: Former Community Communications Department assistant officer Abdul Wahab Abdul Kader Jilani has failed in his application to obtain an injunction to stop Badrul Hisham Shaharin, also known as Chegubard, from making statements about a viral video.
High Court judge Judicial Commissioner (JC) Roz Mawar Rozain dismissed Abdul Wahab's application after ruling that there was no real risk of Badrul repeating the alleged defamatory statement.
She also dismissed Abdul Wahab's application for a court order to compel Badrul to erase a Facebook posting on the video, allegedly containing a lewd conversation involving Abdul Wahab and former Community Communications Department director-general Datuk Mohammad Agus Yusoff.
According to the judge, the plaintiff had failed to satisfy the strict prerequisites under Order 29 of the Rules of Court 2012.
"The plaintiff did not satisfy the burden of proof in proving that the statement was defamatory before this court even considers the defence raised by the defendant," she said on Monday (May 20).
The JC also ordered Abdul Wahab to pay RM10,000 in costs to Badrul.
The court then fixed June 4 for Badrul to file his defence against Abdul Wahab’s claims, June 18 for the plaintiff to file his reply, and case management on July 3.
Trial dates have been fixed for three days: Sept 2, 3, and 4, next year.
On December 22, 2023, Abdul Wahab filed the lawsuit against Badrul for allegedly defaming him.
This was over a video of a conversation which allegedly took place between Abdul Wahab and Mohammad Agus.
In the statement of claim, Abdul Wahab stated that the defendant had published, broadcast, and spread defamatory statements against him in a video on a Facebook page under the names "CheGuBard" and "Che'GuBard Official" for public viewing.
He claimed the video, which was also posted on the defendant's Telegram channel under the name "Che'gubard Original," depicted him and Mohammad Agus having an indecent conversation intended to show that he (Abdul Wahab) was involved in immoral or homosexual activities.
Abdul Wahab claimed that the Facebook and Telegram pages belonged to the defendant, who had full access and control of the accounts, and that the defamatory statements were published for his personal benefit, in terms of popularity and position among his followers.
Abdul Wahab was seeking RM5mil in aggravated and exemplary damages, as well as general damages in an amount deemed fit by the court.
