Four step up with SDs claiming to witness Arafat pulling gun out

Summary

• Four men come forward with statutory declarations (SDs), claiming to be witnesses to Hulu Kinta assemblyperson Arafat Varisai pulling out a gun on April 13.

• The SDs were signed by six individuals, who are all members of the Tambun PKR division.

Four men have come forward with statutory declarations (SDs), claiming to be witnesses to Hulu Kinta assemblyperson Arafat Varisai Mahamad pulling out a gun in an incident on April 13.

Preseen Nair Vijayakumaran, 34, insisted that the incident was true and was not a false or slanderous accusation.

“I myself was an eyewitness to the incident, along with several other individuals who also witnessed the incident clearly.

“We have come forward to sign an SD to officially and responsibly confirm this matter,” he said in a press conference in Ipoh today.

The SDs were signed by five other individuals, two of whom were not present at the press conference.

Apart from Preseen, the other five are G Hasvin Kumara, 29; V Sehghar, 27; GP Nagaindran, 29; V Kavish Nair, 22; and R Narayanasamy, 44.

All of them are members of the Tambun PKR division.

On April 13, Malaysiakini reported that Arafat, who is also the outgoing Tambun PKR chief, denied claims he showed a gun to his challenger during the party election campaign.

The two-time assemblyperson also claimed that such accusations often surface during party elections to smear his reputation for the political gain of his rivals.

Tambun PKR, along with other divisions in Perak, held a division election on Sunday (April 13).

Official results later showed that Arafat lost to Shamsul Kamar Ani, and Arafat’s running mate, Norhayati Sani, lost to Shamsul’s teammate, A Kalaimugilan.

Earlier, Kalaimughilan uploaded a video claiming Arafat was present at the campaign venue and pointed a gun at their group.

Kalaimughilan, along with several other individuals, claimed to have evidence to support their allegations.

He also claimed Arafat threatened several candidates in this election.

‘Disruptive police report’

Meanwhile, Preseen said the group was informed that Arafat’s team had lodged a police report against Kalaimughilan for allegedly making a false and defamatory report.

Preseen insisted that the individual who filed the report on Arafat’s behalf was not at the scene.

“Therefore, questions arise over the basis for the claim that the original report is untrue.

“More confusingly, the individual is a liaison officer working in Arafat’s office and his statement, which is not supported by solid facts, is seen as an attempt to disrupt the police investigation process.

“We call on all parties to give room to the authorities to conduct a fair, independent, and transparent investigation,” Preseen said.

He said all of them were also summoned by the police to give their statements.

Because of this, he added that any party insisting the incident did not happen will be regarded as spreading false information and openly lying.

“We will not hesitate to make a police report against these individuals,” he added.

Preseen further referred to Arafat’s statement, in which the latter claimed the object he took out was a flashlight.

“We question the rationality and necessity of releasing a torchlight in broad daylight, let alone during a tense situation.

“Logically, the explanation is unreasonable and suspicious. We would like to emphasise that we will not remain silent against any attempt to distort the facts or cover up the truth.

“We are confident that the authorities will carry out their responsibilities with full integrity to maintain public order and uphold justice,” Preseen added.

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