Higher Education Minister Khaled Nordin today expressed confidence that the police have a basis in its arrest of a university student related to the Bersih 3.0 protest on April 28.

“I believe when a student has been arrested then certainly there is a basis for the arrest to take place,” he said when approached by journalist after a special Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) convocation session in Tanjung Malim.

the real khalid ismath in bersih 3.0 rally Student activist Khalid Ismath ( right ) was on Saturday arrested by police over allegations that he had kicked a police officer during the protest.

The arrest was based upon a photograph of the assailant in action who resembled Khalid, who is a Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) student.

However, Khaled  declined to comment on the specifics of the alleged wrongdoing during the demonstration, stating: “I trust the police and I believe it is already being taken up by the university.”

The next step, he added, was for universities to determine whether students involved in the Bersih 3.0 rally had tarnished the institutions’ good name on a case-by-case basis.

“We have said repeatedly that any out-of-campus activities must abide by the law as they are subjected to them if they break the law.

“If the university feels that the actions of the students have tarnished the reputation of the university then they will have to take action,” he said.