KUALA LUMPUR: Swatch Malaysia is permitted to initiate its judicial review to contest the recent confiscation of 172 watches from the Pride Collection by the Home Ministry.
High Court Judge Datuk Amarjeet Singh today allowed a leave application filed by the watchmaker company to challenge the seizure of its watches which purportedly promoted the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.
It named the Home Ministry's secretary-general, enforcement division secretary, minister, and the government as the respondents.
Lawyer Nizam Bashir who appeared for the applicant said the respondents did not object to the application.
The company, in its statement, claimed that the seizure was conducted for improper political motives due to the upcoming state elections.
It claimed the home minister sought to show his "Islamic" credentials for political purposes.
It also claimed that the respondents acted simply upon polemic and unreliable social media posts.
The company asserted that most of the confiscated watches did not indicate that they were associated with Pride or any similar movement.
The company claimed that eight of the nine designs of the watches did not outwardly or on the face of them expressed any indication that they were associated with Pride or any similar movement.
The company also claimed that watches were not defined as a form of publication under the Printing Presses and Publication Act (PPPA).
The company contended that the respondents acted unconstitutionally to breach the applicant's right to livelihood and property.
"The seizures were arbitrary and capricious in all the circumstances.
"The respondents failed to take into account relevant considerations and acted unreasonably towards the applicant," it claimed.
The company seeks a certiorari order to quash the seizure notices and direct the respondents to return the seized watches.
On May 13 and 14, the ministry was reported to have raided 11 Swatch boutiques in shopping malls such as Pavilion KL, 1 Utama, Sunway Pyramid, Mid Valley Megamall, and Suria Sabah over the brand's "Pride Collection".
Five shops at malls in Alor Star, Kuala Terengganu, Kota Baru, Johor Baru, and Kuching were let off with warnings.
The raid reportedly came after netizens linked the collection to British band Coldplay's support for the LGBT community.
Swatch Group chief executive officer Nick Hayek had also issued a statement saying the watches seized by the ministry did not contain any references to the LGBT community.