KUALA LUMPUR: The Attorney-General (AG) has obtained High Court leave to proceed with contempt of court proceedings against Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng over the latter's press statements regarding his graft case.
Senior federal counsel Datuk Amarjeet Singh confirmed that judge Datuk Hanipah Farikullah gave the go-ahead during case management of the matter in her chambers this morning.
Amarjeet, who represented AG Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali, said the legal action was over Lim having allegedly scandalised the courts over his media statements that surfaced on online social media.
He added that they will be filing court papers to initiate committal proceedings within two weeks. Lim was not represented during the ex-parte (only one party present) matter.
According to a copy of the originating summons obtained through file search at the High Court Registry here, Apandi seeks for committal order against Lim over statements he made during a press conference during the launch of the Dr Wu Lian Teh Symposium at the Penang Institute at Jalan Brown, Georgetown, Penang.
Lim was alleged to have said that the "trumped up corruption charges" against him were part of a conspiracy involving the courts to imprison him.
Lim claimed trial to two charges at the Georgetown High Court.
On the first count, he was accused of having used his position as a civil servant to obtain gratification for him and his wife, by approving an application by Magnificent Emblem Sdn Bhd to convert agricultural land to residential land, while chairing a state Planning Committee meeting on July 18, 2014.
For the second charge, he was accused of using his position to purchase a house from businesswoman Phang Li Koon for RM2.8 million, which was a value he knew was below the property's market value of RM4.27 million, on July 28 last year.
Apandi filed the originating summons on Aug 18.