Fiadhi Fadzil, 35, now with the commercial crime division at the Temerloh police headquarters in Pahang, said a mosque committee member had asked Fahmi to explain an issue involving a concert in Sepang by the band The 1975, after he had completed congregational prayers.
“Based on the video I viewed, YB (Fahmi) initially declined to speak in the mosque, but he was later handed a microphone by a committee member.
“He did not intend to speak, but he was compelled (to do so) after being handed a microphone.
“Throughout the video, he only explained his reasons for cancelling the concert, that was all,” he said.
Fiadhi said this during the hearing of a defamation suit filed by Fahmi, the Lembah Pantai MP, against independent preacher Ahmad Dusuki Rani over posts uploaded on Facebook and Instagram in 2023.
He said his investigation found no grounds to charge Fahmi under Section 4A(1) of the Election Offences Act 1954.
He also agreed that delivering a political speech at a mosque, and merely speaking there, were two different matters.
Questioned by counsel Kamarulzaman Jusoh, representing Dusuki, if his investigation focussed on whether Fahmi had delivered a political speech, he replied: “Yes, that is correct.”
Dusuki, 50, said in his witness statement that the posts in question did not have a wide reach or circulation, and did not affect Fahmi’s reputation.
While he agreed with Fahmi’s counsel, Fahri Azzat, that he had a responsibility to ensure the accuracy of his posts on Facebook and Instagram, he disagreed with the suggestion that they were intended to influence his followers.
Dusuki also admitted that he did not contact Fahmi or his office before making the posts.
He acknowledged that Fahmi was an MP and Cabinet minister, but denied causing any damage to his reputation, adding that he had neither offered compensation nor issued an apology.
Both Fahmi and Dusuki closed their cases today.
The court set July 9 for oral submissions.
Justice Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin Shah Raja Mohzan also directed both parties to file their written submissions and replies on May 20 and June 18, respectively.
According to his statement of claim filed on Sept 5, 2023, Fahmi alleges that Dusuki published defamatory statements accusing him of misusing a mosque for political campaigning and acting against the decree of the Selangor sultan.
The statements were published on Dusuki’s Facebook and Instagram accounts on July 31, 2023.
He is seeking damages and an injunction to prevent the defendant from repeating or republishing the allegedly defamatory statements.