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KUALA LUMPUR, March 5 — Umno supreme council member Datuk Mohd Puad Zarkashi has removed his February 9 Facebook post which was cited in a defamation lawsuit against him by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
This is after the High Court on March 1 granted Muhyiddin’s ex-parte application for an interim injunction or temporary injunction to stop Puad from publishing the alleged defamatory Facebook post or other similar contents for now.
The interim injunction obtained on March 1 is in effect until an inter-parte hearing or a hearing involving both sides on the interim injunction.
The High Court has fixed March 12 for the inter-parte hearing of the interim injunction.
In Muhyiddin’s ex-parte application for the interim injunction against Puad sighted by Malay Mail, he sought for the High Court to order for the temporary injunction to stop Puad or his associates and representatives from publishing, posting, sharing or resharing the alleged defamatory Facebook post or similar and related statements to the Facebook post’s contents.
In the ex-parte interim injunction application, Muhyiddin had asked the court to state that it is “contempt of court” for anyone who breaches or causes the breaching of the injunction despite knowing of such an injunction, and that an inter-parte hearing of the interim injunction be heard within 14 days from the granting of the ex-parte interim injunction.
On March 1, Muhyiddin filed a defamation lawsuit against Puad over the latter’s February 9 posting titled “Kuarantin Pun Ada Dua Darjat” on his Facebook page “DrPuad Zarkashi”, with Muhyiddin’s lawyers saying that the Facebook post and its contents are untrue and baseless.
While Muhyiddin is the prime minister of Malaysia, his lawyers made it clear in the court papers that he had filed the defamation lawsuit in his “personal capacity as a private citizen”.
In the defamation lawsuit against Puad, Muhyiddin is seeking compensation in the form of general damages, exemplary damages, and aggravated damages with the amount to be assessed and determined by the court.
Muhyiddin is also seeking an injunction to restrain Puad or his associates or representatives from publishing, posting, sharing the February 9 Facebook post or continuing to do so, as well as an injunction to stop such actions in relation to statements similar or related to the Facebook post.
The prime minister is also seeking a court order for Puad to immediately, prominently and permanently publish an unequivocal public apology on Puad’s Facebook page “DrPuad Zarkashi” in terms to be dictated by Muhyiddin, as well as a court order for Puad to cause all the news portal and social media — that will be identified by Muhyiddin — that had published the alleged defamatory remarks in his Facebook post to also immediately and prominently publish an apology.
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