KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 20 — Police have arrested activist Lawrence Jeyaraj this evening for posting allegedly seditious comments on his Facebook page, just a day after a Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) leader was apprehended for a similar offence.

Lawyer Michelle Yesudas, who is representing Lawrence, confirmed that the activist was arrested under the Sedition Act 1948 for a posting he made on his Facebook account, but said there weren’t much details about the alleged offence as yet.

“He will be detained until tomorrow morning, until the remand hearing,” Yesudas told Malay Mail Online.

“It’s got something to do with his posting on Facebook but I’m not sure which one,” she added.

Yesterday, Director of Kuala Lumpur contingent crime prevention and community safety department SAC Zainuddin Ahmad told Malay Mail Online that PSM secretary-general S. Arutchelvan had been detained over a statement on February 10 denouncing Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy verdict as a “political judgment, beyond reasonable doubt”.

Zainuddin, however did not respond to Malay Mail Online’s queries at the time of the arrest, which came at the evening of the Chinese New Year.

Arutchelvan was released this evening after the court rejected the police’s request to extend his remand.

According to a report by English daily theSun last week, the police are also looking to investigate Jingga 13 chief and PKR leader Fariz Musa and Penang state executive councillor Dr Afif Bahardin.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar was reported saying that Fariz will be investigated for allegedly inciting street protests, while Afif had purportedly asked the public to no longer trust the judiciary.

Putrajaya had previously pledged to repeal the Sedition Act 1948 that critics say is used to stifle political opposition and dissent, but later announced that it will be retained and expanded instead.

The Federal Court on Tuesday upheld the Court of Appeal’s 2014 ruling that had reversed Anwar’s acquittal of sodomising former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, also sentencing him to five years’ jail.