Eight PKR Youth members may be charged in court next Tuesday over the display a number of photographs and an effigy of slain Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu on their cars.

The eight - from Perak, Terengganu and Sarawak - were arrested on April 7, which was polling day, when their cars were making the rounds in the Bukit Gantang parliamentary constituency.

bukit gantang amk pkr altantuya hearst 180409 One of the cars had a effigy of a mock coffin tied to the roof, plastered with pictures of Altantuya, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and his wife, Rosmah Mansor.

Contacted today, PKR Youth chief Shamsul Iskandar said the eight had been ordered to appear at the Taiping Magistrate Court as part of their police bail condition.

However, Shamsul said he was still in the dark as to what charges, if any, would be laid against the eight.

Shamsul also accused the authorities of applying double standards when making their decision on which court cases could be raised in electoral campaigns.

He was referring to BN’s liberal use of sodomy charges against PKR de facto Anwar Ibrahim, a matter pending in court, as a major campaign issue in the Permatang Pauh by-election last year.

“It is very clear that the move to arrest people displaying pictures of Altantuya is politically motivated. If Barisan Nasional were to use similar court cases against opposition figures, the police would not take action,” said Shamsul.

‘It’s an international issue’

“By barring us from raising the issue, the police are taking sides. We wanted to show the public the injustice that has been done to Altantuya,” he said.

bukit gantang amk pkr altantuya hearst 180409 Shamsul added that the Altantuya issue has also recently attracted worldwide attention.

He was referring to the international media coverage on the matter when Najib was sworn in as Malaysia’s sixth prime minister.

In addition, French newspaper Liberation has also reported lurid details of Altantuya’s alleged connections with Najib and how she was murdered.

Najib has repeatedly denied any links with Altantuya, who was reported to have a role in the arms purchase in France several years ago, when the former was defense minister.