Lawyer Gobind Singh Deo, a member of the legal team filing the writ of habeas corpus on behalf of the Kelantan sultan, denied media reports that the ruler is incapacitated.

"Let me assure you, at this point in time he is very conscious," said Gobind at a press conference at a private club in Kuala Lumpur.

Pressed further, Gobind refused to elaborate, adding: "Let us not get into that, you have heard media reports that the sultan is due for his medical check-up and let us leave it at that."

NONE However Raja Aziz Addruse ( left ) who heads the legal team, added that there are worries that the Sultan may not be receiving the medical treatment that he needs.

"He was due to go to Singapore to receive the continued treatment from the doctors who treated him before. So everybody's worried."

Quizzed if the Sultan is receiving treatment at the hospital he is currently at, Raja Aziz simply said, "I do not know of that."

Asked if the regent Tengku Muhammad Faris Petra will be named as respondent, senior lawyer Raja Aziz Addruse brushed it aside, pointing the finger instead at the federal government and the police.

"As far as we are concerned, the regent is irrelevant in this matter. The active party here is the police and the federal government - they are the ones restraining the sultan," he said.

Lawyer Param Cumaraswamy, who was also at the press conference, said that the federal government had a lot to answer for.

"Both the IGP and the Kelantan CPO have a lot of explanation to do as to why the Sultan has been treated in this manner," he said.

Asked why would the the federal government be holding the sultan at the Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia in Kota Bahru, Gobind said:

"That you have to ask them. In fact, I find it strange that no one has explained the circumstances surrounding the incident.

"I find that the manner in which the sultan was taken to the hospital, is something that the home minister and the IGP should have responded to now."

gobind singh deo jalan duta court 230409 07 The way by which the Sultan's was diverted from his planned trip to Singapore which saw the intervention of police UTK personnel, has also raised eyebrows, added Gobind (left ) who is also Puchong parliamentarian.

Sultan said to be incapacitated

Earlier today, the Malay Mail , citing a source close to the palace said in a news report that due to the Sultan being paralysed, he was unable to speak, eat, or even see due to his condition.

"So, how could Tuanku have said he was being held against his will (at Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital in Kubang Kerian) when he can't even speak, cannot see, cannot eat," the source was quoted to have said.

The source also questioned how the Sultan could have then been issuing royal orders when he allegedly could not talk.

Meanwhile, Bernama reports that a team of 10 government specialists appointed by the Kelantan government have arrived at HUSM to examine the sultan.

Comptroller of the Kelantan royal household Abdul Halim Hamad saidthe team arrived at the hospital at 3pm and would remain there until their examination of the sultan was complete.

"They are here to ascertain the health status of the sultan," he said when contacted, adding they would prepare a report which would be forwarded to the Regent of Kelantan Tengku Muhammad Faris Petra.

Excerpts of Tengku Muhammad Fakhry's affidavit in support of his habeas corpus application