No-show by prosecution in Kugan's death

The fizz over the expectation that a police officer would be charged this morning for the death of detainee Kugan Ananthan has dissipated.

Thus far, there is no sign that the case will come up at the Petaling Jaya Magistrate’s Court today, as anticipated .

Tun Majid Tun Hamzah, the head of prosecution in the attorney-general's chambers, said “nothing has been confirmed” at this point.

He denied rumours that the police officer would be charged later today.

Kugan's uncle V Raviroy, who had arrived at the court at 8am, said he is uncertain if the police personnel involved will be charged.

"I found out about this from (Kota Alam Shah assemblyperson and lawyer) M Manoharan, but up to 11am today, there has been no sign (of the police officer)," he said.

He and another of Kugan’s uncles, N Ravi, were accompanied by Manoharan and Kapar parliamentarian M Manikavasagam.

Reporters too had been waiting as early as 8am, only to find out that the case may be postponed. However, they remained on standby up to this afternoon for any developments.

Contacted this morning, Selangor police chief Khalid Abu Bakar indicated that he is in the dark.

"I haven’t any news about this and I am not sure what is happening at the moment," he said.

Kugan, 23, died on Jan 20 at the USJ Taipan police station, five days after he was picked up in connection with a car theft case. His family has accused the police of foul play.

Two post-mortem examinations were conducted. The second of these revealed that Kugan had been beaten, burnt and starved prior to his death.

Concerned groups have long complained about the lack of action in the case, which exploded into a national issue after a video recording revealed severe lacerations on Kugan’s body.

Lingering question

According to Manoharan (right) , it is quite a mystery as to why only one police officer is to be charged, instead of 11 cops who were allegedly involved in Kugan's death.

"I bet that one person will be made a scapegoat and the rest are going to escape. There is not going to be any justice in this case," he said.

He also expressed regret to learn that Kugan's mother N Indra can no longer witness justice for her son as she cannot take any more leave from her job as a housekeeper.

"She was apparently threatened by her employer who said that she would lose her job if she takes more leave to attend to Kugan's case," he said.

Manoharan further said it is also strange as to why the postponement was made without any prior notice.

"Is it because it involves the police and that is why they want to charge them quietly?" he asked.

He added he wants to make sure the police officer is charged under Section 302 of Penal Code, which carries death penalty upon conviction.

Petition to palace still on

Despite a failed attempt to submit a petition to the king last week, Manikavasagam said they will not give up, as they will go to the palace again.

"Although the police stopped us from submitting our petition to the King, we will do so again on Oct 10 as we have set an appointment with the palace," he said.

On the same note, the PKR MP also questioned the timing of the announcement that the cop would be charged today.

He suspected that it has something to do with Bagan Pinang by-election on Oct 11, where 30 percent of the voters are Indians.

"They do this only because they want to look transparent and gain votes from the Indians," he said.

Manikavasagam also revealed that the family is considering filing a legal suit against inspector-general of police Musa Hassan, attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail and those allegedly involved in Kugan's death.