KUALA LUMPUR: The Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) has filed an appeal against the High Court's decision to cancel the Home Minister's suspension order on two publications belonging to The Edge Communications Sdn Bhd.
Senior Federal Counsel Alice Loke, who represented the Home Minister and the Home Ministry secretary-general in the case, confirmed the matter.
The notice of appeal was filed on Wednesday at the High Registrar's Office here and the Court of Appeal in Putrajaya, she said.
She added that the AGC had also filed an application to stay the High Court decision pending the appeal at the Court of Appeal.
On Monday, High Court Judge Datuk Asmabi Mohamad in allowing a judicial review application filed by The Edge Communications Sdn Bhd on July 27, quashed the Home Ministry's suspension of The Edge Weekly and The Edge Financial Daily.
In her oral judgment, Asmabi said the minister's decision to suspend the publications for a period of three months had breached natural justice and ultra vires Section 7 (1) of the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984.
Justice Asmabi Mohamad ordered the suspension lifted and the Home Ministry to pay RM15,000 in costs to the company.
The minister, in a letter dated July 23 signed by one Hashimah Nik Jaafar on behalf of the minister, notified the company of the suspension of the publishing permits of both publications.
According to a letter sent to the senior managing editor of the company, Ahmad Azam Mohd Aris, the ministry said the articles on 1Malaysia Development Berhad by The Edge were detrimental to public order, security and national interest.
It also said the failure to comply with the suspension order would result in the revocation of the publishing permits of the publications. - Bernama
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