The Penang government is "dissatisfied  and unhappy" with the lesser charge of trespassing meted out on the 16 pro-BN intruders who aggressively barged into the state legislative assembly in May last year.

 

The George Town Magistrate's Court had slapped the 16 with only fines, of between RM1,000 and RM1,500 each, in March this year.

 

This prompted the Penang government to appeal the verdicts via a letter sent to Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail.

Gani replied on April 3 that his office is appealing against these sentences.

 

State executive councillor Jagdeep Singh Deo acknowledged that the Attorney-General's Chambers had appealed for stiffer sentences in the High Court in Penang, and he also called for an ‘impact statement’ to be tendered in court.

 

On May 12, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng sent a letter to Gani ( photo ) to urge his office to tender an impact statement to the High Court.

 

Jagdeep said the statement would show the seriousness of the incident, which happened exactly one year ago, to enable the court to consider stiffer sentences.

 

He urged Gani to "vigorously" appeal the earlier sentences, which he described as a "slap on the wrist".

 

Jagdeep said the impact statement should come from the complainants of the incident - state assembly speaker Law Choo Kiang and its secretary Maheswari Malayandy.

 

"The court must hear how the speaker felt that his dignity was trampled on when those who barged into the state assembly stepped on his table," Jagdeep said at a press conference today.

 

"The court must also hear how Maheswari felt when the incident happened and how she feared for her life," he added.

 

The BN supporters barged into the state assembly in search of DAP's Seri Delima assemblyman RSN Rayer, who had allegedly uttered the word "celaka" (damn) against Umno.

 

Rayer was charged under the 1948 Sedition Act for his alleged remark in the state assembly in May last year.

 

Those found guilty of trespass included Mohd Ridzwan Bakar, state Perkasa Youth chief Mohd Rizuad Mohd Azudin and Umno Jelutong Youth chief Jasmin Noordin.