KUALA LUMPUR – The High Court today ordered former People’s Progressive Party (MyPPP) president Tan Sri M. Kayveas and his company, Kayveas Holdings Sdn Bhd, to hand over 100,000 units of their shares in Bintang Iradat (M) Sdn Bhd and Wisma MyPPP in Jalan Kampung Attap here, to the insolvency director-general.
Bintang Iradat is a company formed as the investment and corporate entity acting on behalf of MyPPP.
Lawyer Gavin Jay Anand Jayapal, representing 12 former MyPPP members as plaintiffs, said the order was made by judicial commissioner Ong Chee Kwan after allowing part of his clients’ suit against Kayveas, six other individuals, two companies, including Kayveas Holdings, and the director-general for allegedly transferring the building ownership without consent.
The DG, who was appointed to administer MyPPP’s assets following the party’s deregistration on January 14, 2019, was sued in its nominal capacity.
“The court ruled that the consent order obtained by Datuk A. Chandrakumanan (fourth defendant) and Datuk Ly Kim Cheong (fifth defendant) was set aside.
“The court also ordered a permanent injunction to be entered to prevent Kayveas, Kayveas Holdings, Chandrakumanan, Ly, and their agents from transferring the shares in Bintang Iradat and Wisma MyPPP, as well as ordering the (Wisma MyPPP) building to be vacated and handed over to the DG,” said the lawyer.
Gavin said the court also ordered Kayveas, Chandrakumanan and Ly to pay legal costs of RM300,000 and for each of them to pay RM150,000 to the DG.
He told this to reporters after case proceedings which was also attended by lawyers Ashraf Appoo, representing the first to the eighth defendant, and Datin Carolyn Cheah, who represented Datuk Lau Beng Wei, as well as federal counsel Siti Nasuha Abdul Halim, who appeared on behalf of the DG.
The 12 former MyPPP members, including Datuk Seri Maglin Dennis D’Cruz, filed the suit in 2019 and named Kayveas, Kayveas Holdings, Bintang Iradat, Chandrakumanan, Ly, S. Vijayan, Shanker Kandaswamy, A. Kumara Raja, Lau and the DG as defendants.
According to the statement of claim, the plaintiffs stated that after MyPPP was deregistered, all assets belonging to the party were vested under the DG in accordance with Section 17 of the Societies Act 1966.
The plaintiffs claimed that in November 2018 and prior to the deregistration of the party, an illegal conspiracy was formed between Kayveas and other parties, which among others, aimed to cause loss, harm and damage to the MyPPP members who were entitled to the assets.
They claimed that Chandrakumanan and Ly deliberately entered into a consent judgment, dated January 16, 2019, over a transfer of shares that was recorded before High Court judicial commissioner Darryl Goon Siew Chye, despite knowing that MyPPP was deregistered two days earlier.
As such, they sought an order for the consent judgment to be set aside, a declaration that 100,000 shares in Bintang Iradat and Wisma MyPPP belonged to MyPPP and the assets vested under the authority of the DG following the party’s registration.
The plaintiff also applied for a permanent injunction to be granted to prevent Kayveas and his agents from transferring the shares in Bintang Iradat and Wisma MyPPP, as well as for the building to be vacated and handed over to the DG. – Bernama, March 30, 2022
