THE Court of Appeal today heard submissions in the government and Abdul Razak Baginda’s appeal against a High Court decision that ordered them to pay RM5 million in damages to the family of the late Mongolian national, Altantuya Shaariibuu.
Lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo, representing the family of the murdered woman, defended the Shah Alam High Court’s December 2022 ruling, describing it as “correct in law and principle” as it involved a constitutional tort – not merely a civil claim.
“This is not just a claim under the Civil Law Act. The murder of Altantuya was a blatant violation of her constitutional right to life, and as such, falls under the scope of constitutional tort. The High Court was right to award restorative damages,” she said.
Sangeet further argued that the government’s reliance on Section 7 of the Civil Law Act to reject such damages was misplaced, citing a previous Federal Court ruling which had already settled the issue.
“It is a well-established legal principle that appellate courts should be slow to interfere with the discretion of the trial judge. There is no justification for this appeal to disturb the findings of the High Court,” she told the three-judge panel.
The appeal challenges the Shah Alam High Court’s judgment by Justice Datuk Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera, who on 16 December 2022 ruled in favour of Altantuya’s family, awarding RM5 million in general, aggravated, and exemplary damages. The court also ordered interest at five percent annually from the date of filing to full settlement, as well as RM25,000 in costs from each defendant.
The lawsuit was originally filed on 4 June 2007 by Altantuya’s parents, Dr Shaariibuu Setev and Altantsetseg Sanjaa, along with her son, Mungunshagai Bayarjargal. The plaintiffs named the government of Malaysia, political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, and two former police commandos—Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar—as defendants.
They claimed the murder had caused them severe psychological trauma, warranting exemplary and aggravated damages.
Federal counsel Nik Mohd Noor Nik Kar, representing the government, contended the High Court had failed to distinguish personal liability between the defendants and should not have imposed joint damages. He also argued the RM5 million sum was “excessive” and proposed a “more reasonable” award of RM1.384 million.
Separately, counsel for Abdul Razak, Datuk Dr Gurdial Singh Nijar, submitted that no direct evidence linked his client to the murder. His co-counsel Abraham Au added that the RM5 million award could not be justified based on Altantuya’s alleged monthly income of RM6,000.
“If income loss is the basis, the total would be closer to RM1.5 million, significantly lower than the awarded amount,” Au said.
The Court of Appeal, led by Justice Datuk Hashim Hamzah, reserved its decision to a later date.
Altantuya was murdered in October 2006. In 2009, the Shah Alam High Court convicted Azilah Hadri and Sirul Azhar Umar of her murder and sentenced them to death. Abdul Razak Baginda, however, was acquitted of abetment charges. - October 9, 2025
