THE Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) has formally opposed a judicial review application filed by a non-governmental organisation (NGO) seeking to nullify the ongoing inquest into the death of teenager Zara Qairina Mahathir.
The application, submitted on 21 November by Datuk Seri Mohammad Jeffry Rosman, president of Pertubuhan Kebajikan Ekonomi Semangat Bersatu Malaysia (Pembela), argued that the inquest proceedings were not conducted in accordance with Sabah’s Inquest Ordinance 1959.
Senior Federal Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan countered the application, asserting that the NGO lacked locus standi, as it was not a party to the ongoing proceedings. The inquest, which began on 3 September, has so far heard testimony from 56 witnesses.
Kota Kinabalu High Court Judge Datuk Celestina Stuel Galid has scheduled an e-review for 7 January, instructing the AGC to file its arguments by 17 December and the applicant to submit a response by 31 December.
Meanwhile, lawyers representing a teenager involved in the bullying case connected to Zara Qairina, Datuk Ram Singh and Joan Goh, along with Shahlan Jufri, representing Zara Qairina’s mother, indicated their intention to file applications to be admitted as third parties.
The NGO contended that the inquest was incorrectly conducted under the Criminal Procedure Code rather than Sabah’s Inquest Ordinance 1959, which they argue is the applicable law in the state.
Mohammad Jeffry claimed that failure to apply the Ordinance constituted a jurisdictional error, procedural irregularity, and unlawful act, rendering the proceedings invalid and subject to annulment.
He emphasised that Sabah’s Inquest Ordinance 1959 remains legally binding and provides specific protections, including provisions allowing the coroner to convene a jury with at least half of its members from the same ethnic group as the deceased.
Mohammad Jeffry argued that these protections were overlooked in Zara Qairina’s inquest, undermining procedural fairness and compliance with Sabah’s legal framework.
The NGO sought a court order to cancel the inquest entirely, declare the 1959 Ordinance as the governing law, and affirm Sabah’s constitutional rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
However, the organisation did not attend the judicial review hearing, prompting Judge Galid to reprimand the NGO’s legal representative, Jul Hamri Jumhani, stressing the seriousness of the matter and the need for the applicant’s presence in court.
The case highlights ongoing legal scrutiny over procedural compliance in high-profile inquests in Malaysia, raising questions about the interplay between state-specific laws and federal legal frameworks. - December 3, 2025
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