The Kuala Lumpur High Court has dismissed a lawsuit against the federal government concerning the cancellation of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail (HSR) project.
Judicial Commissioner Roz Mawar Rozain ruled that the plaintiff, Hatta Sanuri, lacked the legal standing to initiate the suit and deemed it an abuse of the court’s process.
“The court must abstain from matters within the realm of the executive and legislative branches,” said Roz Mawar Rozain. She highlighted the plaintiff’s failure to establish authorization or representation for taxpayers or citizens in the case.
Concerned about potential frivolous litigations, she emphasized the need for a clear cause of action, preventing the courts from being inundated by cases lacking substantial interest in the matter.
Consequently, Hatta has been ordered to pay RM10,000 in costs.
Hatta’s lawsuit, filed on December 30 last year, named former Prime Ministers Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, along with other officials, as defendants. The suit accused Mahathir and Muhyiddin of negligence and misfeasance in public office, alleging that the cancellation led to substantial compensation payments.
He sought a court order to nullify the project’s cancellation and demanded RM1 million in compensation for himself and Malaysians affected by the termination.
The defendants were represented by Senior Federal Counsel Donald Joseph Franklin, while lawyer Nur Izatul Nabila Nazarudin represented the plaintiff.
The bilateral agreement for the project, initiated on December 13, 2016, was eventually terminated on January 1, 2021, following multiple delays.
The court’s decision marks a conclusion to this legal battle over the cancellation of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail project.