TWO DAP assemblymen and three others detained under a controversial law for alleged links to a defunct foreign separatist group today filed a legal application to challenge their detention.

DAP lawmaker Ramkarpal Singh who is their legal representative said a habeas corpus application was filed at the Kuala Lumpur High Court this afternoon to challenge their detention under Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma).  

“We have filed the application today. In the habeas corpus, we stated that all five must be freed. We stated several reasons (for their release) in our affidavit and one of them is that the arrests were not made with a strict compliance,” Ramkarpal said.

“Under Sosma, a strict compliance with the law must be followed before an arrest.”

Ramkarpal said the hearing date would be announced later on the court’s e-filing website.

He said all five in their motion affirmed they were not part of banned Sri Lankan group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or Tamil Tigers, and denied they were trying to revive the long-defunct movement.

“All of them stated in their affidavit that they are not part of the group in any way. They also acknowledge that the group is long gone and it is impossible for them to revive the group’s movement. Furthermore, LTTE has been de-listed as a terror group by the European Union.”

The five applicants are Gunasekaran Muniandy, Saminathan Ganesan, Chandru Suparmaniam, Suresh Kumar Velayuthan, and Arivainthan Subramaniam.

Gunasekaran is the assemblyman for Gadek in Malacca and Saminathan, for Seremban Jaya in Negri Sembilan.

The government, the Home Ministry, Special Branch counter-terrorism assistant principal Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay, Inspector Jasveer Singh and Inspector-General of Police were named as the respondents.

Habeas corpus is legal recourse for those under detention to plead their case before a judge unless the authorities can show lawful grounds for their arrest.

On October 10, police from the Special Branch Counter-Terrorism Division (E8) apprehended seven men on suspicion of promoting, supporting, channelling funds to and possessing materials related to the Tami Tigers.

The seven were detained in Selangor, Perak, Kedah, Negri Sembilan, Malacca and Kuala Lumpur.

Two days later five more men were picked up on the same charges in Penang, Malacca and Selangor.

All 12 were detained under Sosma which allows for detention of up to 28 days without charges.

Police said they had proof the dozen suspects were trying to revive the Tamil Tigers by promoting, recruiting for and financing the ethnic Tamil separatist group which was defeated by the Sri Lankan government almost 10 years ago. – October 20, 2019.