KUALA LUMPUR: A member of Parliament has detailed why criminal cases cannot be "settled" amid the police's probe into the assault of an e-hailing driver.
Pasir Gudang MP Hassan Karim, who is also a lawyer, said when a police report is lodged it is called a First Information Report or FIR.
"As soon as the police receive such a report, and if a physical assault is committed, a criminal offence under the Penal Code, then the police's job is to call in the assailant for investigation," he said in a Facebook post.
"The police also need to send the victim to a public hospital nearby to examine the injury inflicted."
An investigation paper must then be opened and the accused's statement must be taken as per Section 122 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC).
If a probe takes longer than 24 hours, the assailant must be remanded under Section 117 of the CPC with the police presenting the suspect before a Magistrate in a Magistrate Court or police station to obtain a remand order.
Hassan said a case cannot be "settled" just because the victim made a second police report saying so.
"What matters is the first police report made, ie, the FIR," said Hassan.
He said the term "case settled" refers to "tort offences" in which a person does not intend to take civil action over an incident.
"However, criminal offences are within the jurisdiction of the police.
"Even if the victim later pulls back the police report, or makes a second police report that says the case has been resolved, from the standpoint of law, this does not affect or stop police action.
"This is the position of law under the rule of law in Malaysia."
Hassan said Article 8 of the Federal Constitution states that all citizens are equal before law and that regardless of who the assailant is, any assault case cannot be taken lightly.
"Under Article 5 of the Federal Constitution, every citizen including persons with disabilities is guaranteed their liberty."
Yesterday, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said the probe into the alleged assault of a deaf-mute e-hailing driver by a security personnel was ongoing.
Before that, His Royal Highness Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, the Regent of Johor called for the probe, saying he wanted justice for the victim.
He also hit out at attempts to link the royal institution to the alleged assault.
It was previously, reported that the police were probing the alleged assault, purportedly involving a bodyguard tasked with escorting a VVIP.
Later, the e-hailing driver, who is deaf-mute, lodged a report stating that the matter had been resolved and that he did not want to prolong the matter.