Landmark judgement: Federal Court says govt to award aggravated damages for death in police custody

PUTRAJAYA (March 22): In a landmark judgement, the Federal Court here ruled today for the first time that the Malaysian government is required to award aggravated damages to the next of kin of a person who dies while in police custody.

However, the court also ruled that the next of kin is not entitled to exemplary damages following the death of their relative while in police custody.

Malaysia’s highest court decided on the matter today after hearing the case involving former lorry driver P Chandran, who died in police custody in Kuala Lumpur in 2013 after his medical needs were not attended to.

Today, the seven-member Federal Court bench led by Court of Appeal President Tan Sri Rohana Yusuf decided that the family of Chandran is entitled to get aggravated damages amounting to RM200,000 but not exemplary damages of the same quantum that was awarded earlier by the High Court and upheld by the Court of Appeal.

The seven-member Federal Court bench included Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Datuk Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim and Federal Court Judges Datuk Abdul Rahman Sebli, Datuk Zabariah Mohd Yusof, Datuk Seri Hasnah Mohammed Hashim, Datuk Rhodzariah Bujang and Datuk Nallini Pathmanathan.

Judges who agreed with Rohana’s decision today included Abang Iskandar, Abdul Rahman, Zabariah, Hasnah and Rhodzariah.

Nallini, meanwhile, upheld the earlier decisions by the High Court and the Court of Appeal to award the exemplary damages to Chandran’s family.

The exemplary damages amounted to RM200,000.

Today, Rhodzariah wrote the Federal Court’s ruling, which was arrived at based on decisions by the majority of judges on the seven-member bench.

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