KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 29 ― The RM10 million defamation suit filed by Senator Dr Syed Husin Ali against Utusan Melayu (Malaysia) Bhd (UMMB) and former Kulim-Bandar Baharu Member of Parliament Datuk Zulkifli Noordin was settled today with the plaintiff withdrawing the suit.

High Court Judicial Commissioner Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera recorded the settlement after both parties agreed to the terms.

Prior to that, lawyer Datuk Firoz Hussein Ahmad Jamaluddin, representing UMMB and its Group editor-in-chief Datuk Abdul Aziz Ishak, told the court that his clients had agreed to retract the alleged defamatory statements against Syed Husin which was published by the newspaper, dated Nov 20, 2011.

The company also agreed to pay an undisclosed amount to Syed Husin as costs. The suit was over an article, headlined "Zul Noordin nafi dakwaan Syed Husin" (Zul Noordin denies allegation by Syed Husin), which was published in the Utusan Malaysia newspaper.

Zulkifli, through his lawyer Mohd Ruzaini Zulkifli, also told the court that he agreed to retract the alleged defamatory statement, with the title "Anjing-anjing Pencen" (Retired Dogs) posted on his blog on Nov 19, 2011 and would pay an undisclosed amount to Syed Husin.

Syed Husin, the former Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) deputy president, filed the suit on Jan 27, 2012, seeking damages of RM10 million, as well as exemplary damages, interest, cost and other relief deem fit by the court. 

He also sought an injunction to prevent the defendants from further publishing the alleged defamatory words. 

In the statement of claim, Syed Husin stated that Utusan Melayu and Abdul Aziz had, with malicious intent, published words defamatory of him in the article published in the Utusan Malaysia newspaper of Nov 20 last year. 

He said Zulkifli had posted the same article in his (Zulkifli's) personal website under the different heading of "Anjing-anjing Pencen".

Meanwhile, in another case at the same court, Zulkifli withdrew his counterclaim against Syed Husin over the publication of alleged defamatory words in the book "Memoir Perjuangan Politik Syed Husin Ali" (Memoirs of Syed Husin Ali's Political Struggle).

The court did not make any order to cost.

In the suit filed on Aug 27, 2012, Zulkifli claimed that Syed Husin had falsely and maliciously published and caused to be published defamatory words against him.  

Zulkifli said the words implied that he had offered to Parti Keadilan Rakyat and/or Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in April 2008, after the 12th general election, his resignation as the MP for Kulim-Bandar Baharu to enable Anwar to contest in the by-election.

He claimed that the book was sold at major book stores and the publication of the words had damaged his reputation, image and good name. 

Syed Husin was represented by lawyers N.Surendran and Lateefa Koya. ― Bernama