The Kuala Lumpur High Court has fixed Sept 19 to hear preliminary objections to a judicial review application over the Home Ministry's declaration that Bersih 2.0 is an illegal organisation.

Judge Rohana Yusof of the Appellate and Special Powers division fixed the date after a high-powered team from the Attorney-General's (AG) Chambers told the court that the home minister and the government were challenging the application.

The five-member team from the AG's Chambers was led by senior federal counsel Kamaluddin Md Said, who heads the Trials and Appeals unit.

The Sept 19 proceedings will decide whether or not Bersih 2.0 will obtain leave (permission) to initiate the judicial review.

It is not an automatic right for applications to be heard straight away, to ensure that such an application is not frivolous.

Bersih 2.0's 14-member steering committee, represented today by solicitor Fahri Azzat, had on July 8 filed the 48-page application and named the home minister, the inspector-general of police and the government as respondents.

This was seen as a means of stopping the authorities from taking further action against the coalition, its members and those who were expected to take part in the July 9 rally in Kuala Lumpur.

NONE Bersih 2.0 chairperson Ambiga Sreenevasan led the coalition in submitting the application.

On July 1, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein had declared Bersih an illegal organisation under the Societies Act 1966, but Ambiga rejected the order outright, pointing out that the movement is a loose coalition of registered societies.

The group is seeking an order of certiorari to either remove Hishammuddin's declaration or to declare it null and void.

Bersih is also seeking an order prohibiting the minister and police from entering all or any of the premises of the applicants, search of the premises, seizure and/or detention of all or any property belonging to the applicants.

It also wants a mandamus order to release all T-shirts, placards, newspapers, books, circulars, pictorial representations, periodicals, pamphlets, posters, proclamations, accounts, banners, list of members, seal, insignia, arms or any other document or writing or other object bearing the logo and words ‘Bersih 2.0'.

In addition, it is seeking costs and other relief deemed fit by the court.