GEORGE TOWN, June 13 — A Bangladeshi worker who is suing Putrajaya, the Immigration Department and police for RM3 million over three lashes of the cane may now be deported after he lost his bid for a criminal revision of his case.

At the High Court here today, Judge Datuk Zamani Abd Rahim said he is disallowing the application by Alamin Sheikh Badsha Sheikh, 28, for a criminal revision of his conviction and sentencing for dishonestly receiving stolen property under Section 411 of the Penal Code.

"I have decided not to exercise my discretion to carry out the revision," Zamani said.

Alamin, through his counsel S. Raveentharan, had sought his conviction and sentence of one month's jail and RM1,000 fine to be set aside, and for a fresh trial to be held.

Advertisement

He is also applying for permission to remain in Malaysia pending a re-trial of the case.

"Now we have no choice but to file an appeal to the Court of Appeal against this decision because this case should be revised and he should be allowed to stay on in Malaysia for a re-trial," Raveentharan said.

But he said with the application thrown out, Alamin will be deported soon.

Advertisement

Alamin was arrested on June 28 last year, before he was convicted and sentenced on July 18 the same year after pleading guilty to the charge.

In his submissions, Raveentharan said Alamin had only pleaded guilty because he was not represented by a lawyer and there was no Bangladeshi interpreter to explain the procedure to him at that time.

"He has been in the Langkap Immigration Depot for almost a year now," he said.

Alamin was also convicted on July 18 under Section 6(3) of the Immigration Act for entering the country illegally, despite having an approved and valid work permit issued by the immigration department.

He was sentenced six months' jail and three strokes of caning, which was meted out before the case came up for review in the High Court.

When the application to revise his case under the Immigration Act was heard at the Penang High Court on October 25, Zamani set aside the conviction and sentence.

But Alamin had already received the lashing on October 9.

Alamin then filed a civil suit against the federal government, the Immigration Department and the police for the caning and jail sentence he had to serve before the case came up for revision.

In his suit, he is claiming RM1 million for each of the three lashes he received, and RM25,000 for every day he has been kept in custody.

He was also seeking compensation for sexual impairment due to the whipping, and also for not being able to conceive children.

The respondents in the suit are Ridzuan Yusof of the Immigration Department’s Security and Passport Department, the Director General of Immigration Aloya Mamat, investigating officer Mahayun Zuhairi Yadi Zukuri, Penang Chief Police Officer Datuk Abdul Rahim, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar and the Government of Malaysia.

The suit was filed on March 20 and it was fixed for mention on June 24.