KUALA LUMPUR – After filing a defamation case against investigative journalist Lalitha Kunaratnam two years ago, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Tan Sri Azam Baki has filed to withdraw the suit.
According to the notice of discontinuance dated June 11 filed by Azam’s lawyers, the suit comes to a close without the plaintiff reserving his rights to file a fresh action at a later date.
Letters by Azam’s lawyers Zain Megat & Murad to the Kuala Lumpur High Court on June 6 also revealed that both parties were in the midst of discussions to conclude the matter amicably.
“We received instructions from our client (Azam) without prejudice and admission to liability, to pursue an amicable settlement on the matter,” the letter revealed.
Speaking briefly to Scoop, Lalitha confirmed that Azam had indeed discontinued the case without the liberty to file afresh and with no order on costs.
“Lengthy and expensive suits – aimed at draining a journalist’s time and resources – are not worth fighting,” she said when contacted.
At the same time, efforts to contact Azam for comments on the matter received no response as of press time.
Azam filed the suit against Lalitha more than two years ago on January 12, 2022, over allegations made by the investigative journalist in news articles published the year before.
In his suit, Azam referred to two articles written by Lalitha titled “Business Ties Among MACC Leadership: How Deep Does It Go? (Part 1)” and “Business Ties Among MACC Leadership: How Deep Does It Go? (Part 2)” on alleged abuses by the chief commissioner.
In the articles, she cited publicly accessible records to show stock trading activities purportedly of Azam and his brother, Nasir Baki.
Lalitha then questioned if Azam had declared his millions of shares as required under Section 10 of the Public Officers (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations 1993.
In his statement of claim, Azam argued that the headlines of Lalitha’s articles are “sensational, scandalous, annoying, and vilifying”.
He also sought RM10 million in damages from Lalitha.
Prior to the discontinuation, the case was set for trial on July 9. – June 21, 2024