Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) is not amused with Dewan Rakyat Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia pointing out that journalists can be jailed for disparaging the House.

“He likened his position to a judge and cautioned that any unfair or misreporting could amount to contempt of the Dewan Rakyat.

“He further cautioned that those who disparaged the Dewan Rakyat could go behind bars and gave the example of a case in India where two editors were cited for contempt,” said LFL executive director Eric Paulsen.

He added that whether the speaker intended it as a joke or a veiled threat, the remarks were ill-advised and uncalled for.

Paulsen said Pandikar should know better that journalism is not a crime and the journalists were merely performing their role in a democracy to report on matters of public importance.

During a press conference yesterday, Pandikar urged journalists, especially those from online news portals, to provide a more balanced coverage of parliament proceedings.

Malaysiakini was among the news agencies he was displeased with, citing its coverage on the rejection of 30 questions related to 1MDB.

Pandikar related a case in India where two journalists were sentenced by a regional parliament to one year in jail for contempt.

"So meaning if I want to be really nasty, I will find (the minister in charge of Parliament) Azalina (Othman Said) to support a motion, whoever writes anything in contempt of Parliament, goes to jail for a year.

"I didn't say I'm going to threaten you. I'm just reminding you. But if you push me to that, I can do that, I can be evil," he said in jest.

Meanwhile, Paulsen said Pandikar's role as speaker cannot escape public scrutiny as the public has high expectations of his role as the highest authority of the Dewan Rakyat.

“His conduct in rejecting a record number of questions and shutting down any meaningful discussion on 1MDB is certainly an abuse of power and undemocratic, to say the least.

“If he does not want the press to report unflatteringly on his conduct, then he should conduct himself better, be fair to all the parties and not attract controversy,” he added.

As the speaker, Paulsen pointed out, Pandikar can only inspire public confidence and respect through his conduct, in and out of the Dewan Rakyat, and not by berating the press.

“The Dewan Rakyat should be a place for genuine democratic practices, for debates, for questions and answers, not shutting down discussions on technicalities and strained interpretation of parliamentary rules.

“We call upon Pandikar to go back to basics, on what it means to be the speaker of the Dewan Rakyat.

“It is essential that he must remain politically impartial at all times, and let democratic processes flourish, lest he is accused of being the speaker only for the government,” he added.