Lawsuit against astronaut Sheikh Muszaphar over alleged water leakage at villa to go for full hearing

KUALA LUMPUR (July 25): The Sessions Court on Friday ruled that the lawsuit filed by the neighbours of astronaut Datuk Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Al Masrie and his wife over alleged water seepage affecting their four-storey villa must go to a full trial.

The case must be conducted through oral testimony instead of affidavits, judge Norakhmar Mohd Sani informed the parties after an e-review session.

She ordered the neighbours, co-owners Jeffri Shahul Hamid and Low Shih Yuin, to file a writ of summons to facilitate the hearing of oral evidence. Jeffri and Low had initially filed an originating summons to pursue their legal action.

An originating summons is normally used for legal actions involving pure legal interpretation, statutory applications, or documentary evidence with no substantial dispute of fact.  A writ, meanwhile, is used in cases where there are disputes to facts and require oral testimonies.

The decision on Friday was confirmed by Jeffri and Low’s counsel, Lai Chee Hoe of Messrs Chee Hoe & Associates, when contacted by The Edge.

Jeffri and Low filed the suit in February, seeking general damages from Sheikh Muszaphar and his wife, Dr Halina M Yunos, for mental distress and inconvenience allegedly suffered by them, and punitive damages for alleged failure to comply with strate rules, at their villa in Bukit Kiara.

They are seeking a court declaration that Sheikh Muszaphar and Halina must fulfil their legal obligations under the strata rules to fix and prevent leakage to a shared wall.

The court document states that both properties are four-floor semi-detached villas that share a party wall defined under Regulation 65 of the Strata Management (Maintenance and Management) Regulations 2015.

The main issue, according to the suit, is water seepage from the wall, which Jeffri and Low alleged is caused by Sheikh Muszaphar and Halina's unit.

Jeffri and Low, in their suit, are also seeking an order for the couple to carry out all necessary rectification works to the source of the leak between their units, including the gutter at rooftop and toilet.

Alternatively, Jeffri and Low seek permission to carry out the repairs themselves and access Sheikh Muszaphar and Halina’s unit if the couple fail to fix the leaks, and to recover the costs of the work.

Sheikh Muszaphar, who is Malaysia's first astronaut, and his wife are represented by Messrs Wong & Ting.

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