KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 12): The Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur Land Registrar has been granted a stay by the High Court on Thursday from registering a 263.27-acre plot of land in the ‘Duta enclave’ to the liquidator of Semantan Estate (1952) Sdn Bhd.

There are special circumstances due to the presence of government agencies and buildings including the National Archives that hold the country’s historic records, judge Datuk Ahmad Shahrir Mohd Salleh said. The land in Mukim Batu also houses personnel manning those agencies, he noted.

If implemented, the judgement would create immense irreversible consequences, and it is appropriate for a stay to be granted until the determination and the exhaustion of the appeal, Ahmad Shahrir said.

“Conversely, it will not prejudice the company in any manner if execution of the judgement is stayed for the duration of the appeal process,” he said in his decision. “On this fact alone, this court grants a stay pending the appeal, with no order as to costs.”

On Aug 7, the Land Registrar was asked to register the land to Semantan within three months of the court order. The registrar filed its notice of appeal a day after Ahmad Shahrir’s decision.

What buildings are affected?

The ‘Duta enclave’ is today home to a number of government complexes, sports facilities as well as a few other familiar landmarks.

Besides the National Archives and major roads leading from Jalan Duta to Segambut, there are 13 other government buildings including Examination Syndicate, Education Department, Institut Integriti Malaysia, Inland Revenue Board, and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Academy.

The Jalan Duta Sports Complex — comprising the National Tennis Centre, Squash Centre, and Tun Razak Hockey stadium — also sits on the land.

Others included the International Islamic University academic building, Malaysia Institute of Islamic Understanding, Federal Territory mosque, and the Duta bus terminal.

Senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan, who appeared with federal counsel Nur Izzati Zulkifli, had earlier told Ahmad Shahrir of potential irreparable harm if a stay is not granted.

“There are a lot of buildings and other government departments situated on the land as listed in the affidavit with 14 structures and the roads… the area is well connected to the roads frequently used by the public,” he flagged.

The plaintiff Semantan Estate would have all the right to evict those on the property including all departments and government agencies, Shamsul said. “This would effectively compel the departments to close and this would greatly impact and affect the government functions.”

There is also an affidavit by Treasury secretary general Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican, who affirmed that negotiations are still pending with the company, Shamsul added.

The deputy director of the Land Registrar, Mohd Firdaus Ibaruslan, in his affidavit affirmed that a stay would not be prejudicial to the company.

“These are matters of common and general knowledge and this court takes judicial notice of them,” Ahmar Shahrir said.

Ownership irrefutable

Semantan Estate counsel Ira Biswas, who appeared with Janet Chai Pei Ying and Alexie Ng, objected to the stay, stressing that the ownership of the land is "immutable" as affirmed by the Federal Court and cannot be appealed.

“That judgement is irrefutable as liability has already been proven,” she said. “The land does not belong to you and you have to give it up.”

The government had 12 years since the Federal Court decision in 2012 when the apex court refused to grant leave, and “has not done anything to affect the transfer and acted as if it were their land”, she highlighted.

There are no special circumstances involved, Ira argued, as the land belonged to the plaintiff and “it was wrongly registered” to the government.

After a short recess, Ahmad Shahrir announced his decision to grant the stay.

Ahmad Shahrir emphasised that this is not a run of the mill case, and is extraordinary given the nature of the long dispute and the time taken to finally and decisively come to this stage.

“As such, the considerations in determining whether there are special circumstances must indeed be made based on the unique and unmatched background of this case,” he elaborated.

Background to the case

The company had named the registrar as the defendants, and on Aug 7, Ahmad Shahrir allowed an order for the government and its agency to have the liquidator of Semantan Estate to be registered as the proprietor of the land that is free of encumbrances.

Further, he ordered execution of the instruments of the land transfer, issue and cause to be issued of the land title to the plaintiff, and the returning and handling of the possession of land to the plaintiff as the lawful proprietor.

The 263.27 acres were acquired by the government in 1956 to be transformed into what has been called ‘the Duta enclave’.

In 2009, High Court judicial commissioner Zura Yahya ruled that the liquidator of Semantan Estate is the beneficial owner of the 263.27-acre land, and that the government had taken unlawful possession of and trespassed on the land.

Semantan Estate was founded by Eng Lian Group and Ng Chin Siu & Sons Rubber Estates Sdn Bhd — the vehicles of two prominent land-owning families.

Eng Lian Group is mostly known for developing Bangsar in Kuala Lumpur from the 1970s. The group's commercial and retail showcase — Bangsar Village — sits prominently there. Ng Chin Siu & Sons, meanwhile, has kept a low profile and has not done many developments in recent years. Most of Desa Sri Hartamas and Mont Kiara once belonged to it.

The Court of Appeal and the Federal Court in 2012 had upheld the High Court’s decision. The apex court had also dismissed the government’s review application in November 2018.

In a related development, the Court of Appeal is scheduled to hear on Sept 19 Semantan Estate's appeal against the High Court's decision not to grant a mandamus order to compel the government's transfer of the said land.

In October 2021, High Court judge Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid dismissed Semantan Estate's judicial review.