KLUANG: Barisan Nasional (BN) has denied allegations that its candidate, Syed Hussien Syed Abdullah, was once arrested by the police for being involved in a fight 16 years ago.
BN chairman, Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, said based on the report he read, Syed Hussien was trying to defend a blind man who was assaulted and harassed by a group of men.
He also said he personally conducted checks and found no records to support the allegations.
"According to the report, Syed Hussien was attempting to assist a blind man who was being beaten and harassed by a group of men at the time.
"I've already checked, and he has no record, not once has he had a court record, and according to the report, he was in his 20s at the time.
"Upon my checks, there is absolutely no police case or anything of the sort, let alone him being dragged to court," he said when asked to comment on the opposition's allegations that the BN candidate was implicated in a criminal case.
Zahid also said the opposition's move to raise personal issues seemed to be an act of desperation to undermine support for Syed Hussien.
"This shows that the opposition is bereft of issues, so they resort to personal attacks in an attempt to erode voter confidence in Syed Hussien.
"It could also be because their candidate is receiving little traction, and they are trying to disrupt ours," he said.
Meanwhile, Syed Hussien is reportedly set to lodge a report at the Kluang district police headquarters this evening regarding the slander thrown at him.
During a campaign speech by the Perikatan Nasional (PN) candidate in the Mahkota state seat by-election last night, Badrul Hisham, also known as Chegu Bard, accused Syed Hussien of being involved in an assault case that led to his arrest by the police.
Following this, Chegu Bard called for Syed Hussien to provide clarification regarding the allegation and also produced a document purportedly a police report, claiming that Syed Hussien was involved in the criminal case.