SHANTI Dorairaj, mother of the late T. Nhaveen, will participate in a hunger strike gathering this Saturday in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur if the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) fails to provide an update on her appeal against the court’s verdict of her son’s murder case by then. 

The distraught mother said neither she nor lawyer Rajesh Nagarajan, who appointed by the family to hold a watching brief during the murder trial, has received a single update from the AGC on the appeal against the acquittal and discharge of five individuals allegedly responsible for Nhaveen’s death by bullying. 

“It has been a tiring process for me to get any information or developments with regard to my son’s case following acceptance by the AGC to appeal the Penang High Court’s decision. 

“If they refuse to meet me or give an update on the case to my watching brief lawyer, then I have no choice but to organise a hunger strike rally in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday, November 18. 

“The purpose of the gathering is to request the AGC to communicate with the family about the status of the case as well as the states of arrest warrant application for the accused,” Shanti said. 

Shanti urged the AGC to make way for the appointment of a private lawyer to represent them in the appeal if it chooses to refuse her requests.

“I hope the AGC can understand the situation I’m in and the immense pressure I am going through and the emptiness I feel without knowing what is going on with this case,” she added. 

On October 3, the Penang High Court acquitted five people accused of killing Nhaveen, then 18, in 2017.

In his verdict, judge Radzi Hamid said that “there were major flaws in the prosecution’s case against the accused, and hence a failure in proving a prima facie case”.

The AGC filed a notice of appeal but has not provided any news on the case since then.

Previously, Arun Dorasamy, chairman of the Nhaveen Action and Investigation League, a group advocating for justice for the teen, also express frustration over the delay.

Arun, who will be among the participants of the hunger strike along with Shanti and star witness T. Previin, told The Malaysian Insight that they will call off the gathering on Saturday if they receive a confirmation of the arrest warrant application and certificate of urgency from the AGC by Friday. 

“Otherwise, we will continue this and then will make a police report against the AGC and the Attorney General. 

“We will hold the AGC accountable if anything happens to me, Shanti or Previin for failing to take appropriate action,” Arun said. 

He said they had notified the Brickfields police station of the gathering on November 9, adhering to the Peaceful Assembly Act. 

Arun, meanwhile, also alleged that the five accused in the case have left the country. 

“The AGC’s delayed response has given the accused a window of opportunity to abscond,” the activist said. 

On June 19, 2017, the five accused were charged with killing Nhaveen under section 302 of the penal code, read together with section 34 of the same code.

All of the accused were also charged under section 326 of the penal code for causing grievous bodily harm to the victim.

It was reported that Nhaveen was purportedly beaten up by five people while buying burgers at night in Jalan Kaki Bukit, Bukit Gelugor.

Nhaveen’s friend, who was with him, escaped. Nhaveen was later found unconscious in a field with serious injuries including burns on his back and signs that a blunt object had been shoved into his anus. – November 14, 2023.