GEORGE TOWN, Oct 9 — A notice of injunction to stop the Penang legislative assembly from tabling a motion to force four assemblymen to vacate their seats have been withdrawn after both parties reached a settlement.
Lawyer for the four assemblymen, Rosli Dahlan, told the court that both sides have come to an agreement for the injunction to be withdrawn based on two terms.
“The application for notice of injunction is cancelled as there was an agreement by the state to withdraw its motion and to give sufficient notice if they intend to table a similar motion in future,” he told two high courts when the cases came up today.
The four assemblymen Zulkifli Ibrahim (Sungai Acheh), Dr Afif Bahardin (Seberang Jaya), Zolkifly Md Lazim (Teluk Bahang) and Khaliq Mehtab Mohd Ishaq (Bertam) filed three writ of summons against the state legislative assembly speaker Datuk Law Choo Kiang challenging the state’s anti-hopping law, Article 14A(1) of the state constitution.
They also filed applications for injunction to stop the state from tabling a motion to impose the anti-hopping law and force the four to vacate their seats.
State legal adviser Datuk Norazmi Narawi told the court that the state government had agreed to withdraw the motion as it could lead to four by-elections.
“The state government has already announced yesterday to withdraw the motion to avoid by-elections being held now due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.
He also agreed to the second term of the settlement which was for the state to give sufficient notice of 14 days if it intends to table a similar motion in future.
However, there was no order as to costs in the withdrawal of the application for injunction.
The first application of injunction by Zulkifli Ibrahim (Sungai Acheh) was heard first before Judicial Commissioner Datuk Amarjeet Singh at High Court Three.
The two other applications for injunction, by Dr Afif and jointly by Zolkifly and Khaliq, were heard before Judicial Commissioner Wong Hok Chong in High Court Five.
Rosli had also applied for the originating summons of all three cases to be transferred to be heard in the same court.
Both courts noted the withdrawal of the application for injunction.
Both courts then fixed November 26 for case management of the originating summons and to consolidate the three cases.
In their originating summons, the four claimed that Article 14A(1) of the state constitution was ultra vires of the federal constitution.
Rosli said they will continue with the summons based on a precedent case.
Article 14A(1) of the state constitution provides that a member of the legislative assembly shall vacate his seat if having been elected as a candidate of a political party, he resigns or is expelled from or ceases to be a member of the party.
There was a precedent court case in 1992 by Nordin Salleh against the Kelantan state assembly.
The then Supreme Court had declared that the amendment to the Kelantan constitution that prohibited party-hopping was inconsistent with Article 10(1)(c) of the Federal Constitution, a provision that allows freedom of association.
