KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court has dismissed an application for a judicial review filed by a Port Dickson voter to declare the resignation of its member of parliament Datuk Danyal Balagopal Abdullah null and void.
Judge Datuk Nordin Hasan meted out the judgment after hearing submissions by both appellant and respondents in chambers.
Rosmadi Mohd Kassim had filed the application at the High Court (Appellate and Special Powers Division) and named Danyal and the Election Commission (EC) as the first and second respondents.
Rosmadi, as the plaintiff, is a registered voter in the constituency in the 14th general election on May 9 this year.
He also sought a court order to cancel the notice to hold the by-election for the constituency dated Sept 20 that was issued by the EC.
Counsel Ranjit Singh, who represented Danyal, when met after the proceedings said the court meted out the judgment based on Article 51 of the Federal Constitution, which stipulates that a member of parliament can resign as long as he or she signs a letter and hands it to the Speaker.
Article 51 states that: A member of either House of Parliament may resign his membership by writing under his hand addressed, if he is a member of the Senate, to the President of the Senate, and if a member of the House of Representatives, to the Speaker of that House.
Senior federal counsel Datuk Amarjeet Singh, who appeared for the EC, said the resignation made by Danyal was made voluntarily.
“The respondent (Danyal) in his letter stated that he voluntarily resigned and offered his seat to PKR president-elect Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who also agreed on the matter.
“There is no evidence that the resignation was done involuntarily… thus, the court dismissed the application,” he said.
Meanwhile, Rosmadi’s counsel M. Reza Hassan said he would seek his client’s instructions as to whether to file an appeal against the dismissal.
Rosmadi had claimed that he filed the application on the grounds that Danyal’s resignation violated the oath he had taken as an MP, saying it clearly showed that he gave Anwar a greater priority than Malaysians in general and PD voters in particular.