THE High Court in George Town has ordered the immediate release of a couple convicted of committing an indecent act at a Chinese cemetery, after ruling that their initial 12-month prison sentence was excessive and reducing it to time already served.
In a revision ruling, Judge Rofiah Mohamad maintained the conviction against M. Jegathesan, 58, and Halila Abu Bakar, 37, but substituted the sentence with a custodial term running from their arrest on March 23 until the date of the decision.
"Based on the developments as informed to the court earlier, the conviction against both accused is maintained.
"However, the 12-month sentence is replaced with a term of imprisonment from the date of arrest until today. This revision is allowed," New Straits Times reported her saying today.
The court accepted a joint position taken by both the prosecution and defence, which centred on revising the sentence while leaving the conviction intact.
The pair had previously been sentenced by the Magistrate's Court of George Town on March 26 to one year’s imprisonment after pleading guilty to an offence under Section 377D of the Penal Code, with the sentence handed down by Magistrate Nadratun Naim Mohd Saidi.
During the revision proceedings, deputy public prosecutor Muna Mohamed Jaafar told the court that a representation submitted by the defence had been accepted, paving the way for the application to revise the sentence.
"The conviction is maintained…as for the sentence, the detention and imprisonment can be reduced," she said.
Defence counsel Naran Singh said the appeal had been withdrawn in favour of the revision process, noting that while the conviction was not disputed, the sentence imposed was disproportionate.
"The maximum jail sentence is two years. The one-year imprisonment imposed on both applicants is too excessive.
"We proposed that the 12-month jail term be replaced with imprisonment from the date of arrest on March 23, until the disposal of the revision today," he said.
The ruling meant the couple had served 28 days in custody before being released.
Speaking outside court, Naran welcomed the outcome, describing the revised sentence as fair and proportionate.
"The court's ruling meant they had served only 28 days in prison from the date of arrest on March 23 until the disposal of the revision today.
"I'm very happy about this revision. They were sentenced to 12 months, but today they only got 28 days. That is the minimum sentence," he said.
"We did not disturb the conviction. The conviction stays, but the sentence is set aside because it was too excessive for this particular case," he added. - April 21, 2026
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