FIVE HINDRAF LEADERS REMAIN UNDER ISA DETENTION

PUTRAJAYA, Feb 11 (Bernama) -- The five Hindu Rights Action Force
(Hindraf) leaders will remain under Internal Security Act (ISA) detention
for two years after the Federal Court here today dismissed their motion for a
review of a previous panel's decision which denied their release.

They took the case to the Federal Court as a last resort after failing to
get the previous panel of the same court to release them.

In a unanimous decision, Nik Hashim Nik Ab Rahman who sat with Justices S.
Augustine Paul and Zulkefli Ahmad Makinuddin ruled that the motion filed by the
five was not fit for review.

Nik Hashim said the previous Federal Court panel's decision was based on
authorities in two cases -- that of Mohamad Ezam Mohd Nor and Raja Khalid --
which it was entitled to do.

"Whether the decision is right or wrong, it is not for this court to
determine. If we make an attempt to do so, it will lead to another appeal and
we are not prepared to do so. Thus, we dismiss the motion for review," he said.

The five Hindraf leaders are lawyers M. Manoharan, 46, who is also Kota Alam
Shah state assemblyman, P. Uthayakumar, 46, V. Ganabatirau, 40, R. Kenghadharan,
40, and former bank officer K. Vasantha Kumar, 36.

They were held under the ISA on Dec 13, 2007, after being involved in street
demonstrations in Kuala Lumpur on Nov 25 and issuing allegedly slanderous
statements against the government.

On May 14, 2008, a Federal Court panel headed by Chief Judge of Malaya
Alauddin Mohd Sheriff (now Court of Appeal President) dismissed their appeal
after ruling that the order for their detention at the ISA camp in Kamunting,
in northern district of Taiping, by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who
was also the Internal Security Minister then, was lawfully executed.

On Feb 26, 2008, the Kuala Lumpur High Court rejected their application
and ruled that the order for their detention issued by Abdullah last Dec 13,
2007, had conformed to the law.

In their writ of habeas corpus to secure their release, the five claimed
that their detention was unlawful because the grounds of detention stated in the
orders were vague. They named the minister and the commandant of the detention
centre as respondents.

Counsel Karpal Singh, Gcbind Singh Deo and Ram Karpal Singh represented the
five, while senior federal Counsel Abdul Wahab Mohamad acted for the
respondents.
-- BERNAMA