An information technology officer was today fined RM3,000 by the High Court in Kuantan or in default six months' jail, for bringing a ballot paper out three years ago, to prove he could vote twice in the last general election and the failure of the indelible ink.

Judicial Commissioner Hassan Abdul Ghani reversed the Magistrate's Court's decision in acquitting him last year.

Hassan said that by bringing the ballot paper outside the polling station room, Mohd Fadhli Khaharuddin, 26, originally from Sungai Isap Damai, Kuantan, had committed an offence.

The judicial commissioner also ruled that the prosecution need not prove intention in the act of committing the offence by adopting the principle of strict liability offence.

Under this, the liability is said to be strict because the defendants will be convicted even though they were genuinely ignorant of one or more factors that made their acts or omissions criminal.

Lawyer Gene Anand Vendargon, who appeared with his father Bastian Vendargon, confirmed the decision and sentence today with Malaysiakini.

The lawyer described the judgment of not having to prove intention as alarming.

Gene said Fadhli paid the fine, adding that the defence had earlier applied that the IT officer be bound over.

It was reported on Dec 9, last year that Fadhli was acquitted and discharged after the magistrate ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.

He was charged on Sept 12, 2014, with taking out a ballot paper from the polling station at Sekolah Kebangsaan Sungai Isap on May 5, 2013.

The charge under Section 3(1)(h) of the Election Offences Act 1954 carries a fine not exceeding RM5,000 or up to two years' jail, or both, upon conviction.

Fadhli testified in court that he took out the unmarked ballot paper to prove to the police that he was allowed to vote twice.

He voted for the first time in the morning and tried to vote again after the undelible ink marked on his finger disappeared.

"I did that because I was disappointed that the ink could easily be removed while the Election Commission had earlier informed that the ink mark would only disappear after three days," he testified.

Thus, he went again to the same polling station and was given a ballot paper, but he did not mark it and gave it to the policeman on duty.

He then lodged a report at the Kuantan police station and was later charged with the offence of taking out the ballot paper out from the polling station.