FEDERAL COURT REJECTS SEMANTAN ESTATE’S LEAVE TO APPEAL LAND DISPUTE

PUTRAJAYA, Nov 13 (Bernama) -- The Federal Court today dismissed Semantan Estate (1952) Sdn Bhd’s application for leave to appeal the Court of Appeal’s decision, which held that the Federal Land Registrar is not required to transfer the title of the 263.272-acre Duta Enclave land to the company.

As a result, the Court of Appeal’s ruling in favour of the government stands, as the company is unable to proceed with its appeal to the Federal Court due to its failure to obtain leave.

Under the law, litigants in civil cases must first obtain leave before they can proceed with an appeal to the Federal Court.

On June 24 this year, the Court of Appeal ruled that Semantan Estate is not entitled to the land title. However, the court held that Semantan Estate is entitled to adequate compensation, to be assessed based on the land’s value in 1956, when the government took possession of the land.

Today, a three-member bench of the Federal Court, led by the Chief Judge of Malaya, Tan Sri Hasnah Mohammed Hashim, who sat with Federal Court judge Datuk Hanipah Farikullah and Court of Appeal judge Datuk Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali, ruled that the company had failed to meet the threshold requirement under Section 96 (a) and (b) of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964.

The court dismissed the application for leave without costs.

Justice Hasnah then fixed Nov 17 for case management before High Court judge Roslan Mat Nor, who will set an early hearing date for the assessment of compensation.

The disputed land, located in the prime Jalan Duta area and known as the Duta Enclave, houses several government buildings, including the National Hockey Stadium, the Malaysian Institute of Integrity, the National Archives, the Kuala Lumpur Syariah Court, the Inland Revenue Board building, and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Academy.

-- BERNAMA