KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 2): The High Court has dismissed an application by a local egg importer to begin contempt proceedings against former minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali.

Judicial Commissioner Leong Wai Hong has denied the application by J&E Advance Tech Sdn Bhd in its lawsuit against Azmin over his comments that the company won a project from the government through direct negotiations to import eggs from India.

J&E had claimed that Azmin is in contempt of court because his witness statement had contradicted an earlier filing.

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To initiate contempt proceedings in trial, leave must be obtained by the court. If the leave is granted and the person is found guilty of contempt, the person can face jail time, or a fine, or both.

J&E filed a suit against Azmin in April 2023 following the Perikatan Nasional (PN) information chief's comments during a political talk (ceramah) in March that same year.

In its statement of claim, J & E denied Azmin’s allegation, as it said it was never involved nor had links with any direct negotiations with the Malaysian government.

It said although Azmin did not name J&E, he clearly referred to the firm, which was the sole company allowed to import chicken eggs as a temporary measure to meet a domestic shortage of the food item.

It added that the words uttered by Azmin, published by the media and also available on YouTube, were allegedly intended to create hatred towards the company and were made in bad faith.

The company was seeking general, aggravated and exemplary damages and costs of the action.

It was also seeking an injunction to be imposed on Azmin or his agents prohibiting them from making, writing or publishing such defamatory words against the company.

However, Azmin had claimed that his speech was fair comment, involving public interest, and denied any attempt to defame the company.

Azmin said that he had not mentioned the company's name, and only mentioned and criticised the government's policies. Rather, he questioned businessman Deepak Jaikishan's involvement in the project to import eggs.

Azmin said that his comments were justified, and cited Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu, who, through a written parliamentary reply on March 1, said that only one company was allowed to import eggs temporarily from the South Asian country.

Azmin added that a week later on March 8, 2023, Mohamad Sabu announced the plaintiff as the only company allowed to import eggs from India, and that the import permit was not done through an open tender process.

Azmin also referred to Ayer Hitam Member of Parliament Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong’s comments during a parliamentary sitting, criticising the government’s move of allowing only one company to import eggs from India.

Read also:
Azmin: Mat Sabu and Deepak did not deny my comments on their trip to India 

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