The inquest into Teoh Beng Hock’s death was getting to be boring. Many witnesses were called, but there was no earth-shaking revelation or definitive discovery. Experts came and went, ho-humming with theories and speculations, and the impossible possibility that Teoh had committed suicide. It looked for a while as if the inquest was just the type of officious motion that would lead nowhere.

The lovely thing about being a Malaysian is that once in a long while, a pleasant surprise springs upon you when you least expect it. One such surprise was the political tsunami in March last year.

Earlier this week, another surprise was sprung upon unsuspecting Malaysians. Lawyer Gobind Singh Deo submitted a mysterious letter to magistrate Azmil Mustapha Abas who is acting as the coroner in the inquest. After reading the five-page letter, the magistrate ordered the police investigating officer ASP Ahmad Asri Zainal to look into matters raised in the letter immediately, and the court was adjourned.

The Internet was abuzz with all kinds of speculations regarding the content of this mysterious letter written in by an anonymous person. Apparently it was sent to quite a few persons including some members of parliament. Despite some dispute over whether the magistrate had imposed a gag order on the letter, it was impossible for it to remain a secret for long.