KOTA BHARU, March 11 (Bernama) — The High Court was informed today that the 11th, 12th, and 14th defendants had unlawfully managed and transferred ownership of Orang Asli Kelaik customary land without the consent of its rightful custodians.
Testifying as the second plaintiff in the customary land claim, Anjang Uda, 34, said that he and two other plaintiffs would establish that their occupation of the land had been inherited through generations.
“We are also pursuing this action against the first to 10th defendants, whom I believe have unlawfully occupied and trespassed on the customary land for commercial activities.
“My fellow plaintiffs and I will prove that our occupation of the land is ancestral by presenting evidence of our long-standing settlement and use of the land,” he testified.
On the second day of the trial, the plaintiffs, represented by counsels Sachpreetraj Singh Sohanpal, Rajesh Nagarajan, and Ambbi Balakrishnan, presented three witnesses, Anjang Uda, Ahak Uda, 58, and Aziz Angah, 37, who testified before Judge Hasbullah Adam.
The civil lawsuit, filed by the Orang Asli of Kampung Kelaik against 14 entities, including the Kelantan government, commenced yesterday at the High Court and is scheduled to proceed over four days.
The lawsuit was filed in March 2021 at the Kota Bharu High Court on behalf of the plaintiffs and the residents of Kampung Kelaik, seeking a declaration of their rightful ownership over the disputed ancestral land.
The plaintiffs have named ten corporate entities as the first to tenth defendants: Syarikat Perlombongan Gua Musang Sdn Bhd, Redstar Capital Sdn Bhd, Aqua Orion Sdn Bhd, Damai Corporate Services Sdn Bhd, Sindiyan Sdn Bhd, Sindiyan Agro Park Sdn Bhd, Ladang Kelantan Sdn Bhd, Ikrar Bumi Sdn Bhd, Ladang Ulu Nenggiri Sdn Bhd, and Iliasco Engineering & Construction Sdn Bhd, who were represented by separate law firms.
The 11th to 13th defendants are the State Land and Mines Office, State Forestry Department, and Kelantan government, who were represented by the Kelantan Legal Advisor Offices.
The 14th defendant is the Department of Orang Asli Development, which was represented by the Attorney General’s Office.
The trial will resume tomorrow.
— BERNAMA