MIC treasurer-general Ramanan ordered to return RM5.5m to psychiatrist
0 0 Google +1 0 0 comments
KUALA LUMPUR: Newly appointed MIC treasurer-general Datuk R. Ramanan was today ordered by the High Court to return RM5.5 million to psychiatrist Tan Sri Dr M. Mahadevan which he had fraudulently received from the Ministry of Defence when "assisting" Mahadevan to recover the payment four years ago.
Judicial Commissioner Lee Heng Cheong, in his decision, said he agreed with Dr Mahadevan's counsel that Ramanan had fraudulently misrepresented himself to the plaintiff, resulting in him to transfer the money into the defendant's personal account on May 19, 2010.
Lee also ruled that the defendant had failed to prove, as claimed in his statement of defence, that the money was purportedly for a proposed township development project in Sg Petani, Kedah, on a land belonging to Dr Mahadevan.
Ramanan was ordered to pay the money within 14 days from today, but following his application, the court allowed an interim-stay of execution pending an application next Monday.
Dr Mahadevan, 85, a former chief psychiatrist to the government and founder of the Malaysian Psychiatric Association, was in court today.
According to court documents, the plaintiff had filed a claim amounting to RM26.6 million against the Ministry of Defence for the use of land belonging to Dr Mahadevan which was used as a firing range from 1968 to 1988.
In May 2010, the defendant had represented to the plaintiff that he could assist in securing Dr Mahadevan's claim and in return he would require RM6.5 million.
Both parties later agreed the amount to be reduced to RM5.5 million.
In his statement of claim, Dr Mahadevan had included a letter, dated April 2010, from the Ministry of Defence which was shown to him by the defendant, purportedly approving the claim.
Dr Mahadevan were represented by counsels Lavinia Kumaraendran and Cassandra Lee, while Ramanan were represented by lawyers Harjit Singh and Mahendra Maheson. -- BERNAMA
