The High Court in Kuala Lumpur heard on Monday (Dec 9) that Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, testifying in a defamation suit brought by his father, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad against Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, recounted receiving a warm welcome in Bangladesh and Pakistan due to beliefs about his father’s ancestry.
The suit concerns Ahmad Zahid’s alleged use of the name “Kutty” to describe Dr Mahathir, which Mukhriz claimed had political repercussions for Bersatu, the party he co-founded, affecting its performance in the 2018 general election.
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The suit concerns Ahmad Zahid’s alleged use of the name “Kutty” to describe Dr Mahathir, which Mukhriz claimed had political repercussions for Bersatu, the party he co-founded, affecting its performance in the 2018 general election.
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NewsTranscript
00:00The High Court in Kuala Lumpur was told on Monday that Datuk Seri Mukhris Mahathir received
00:06a warm welcome during his visits to Bangladesh and Pakistan for a humanitarian mission, with
00:12attendees believing his father's ancestry could be traced to those countries.
00:16Mukhris, now the President of Perjuang, was testifying in a defamation suit brought by
00:22Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad against Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
00:29The suit concerns Ahmad Zahid's alleged use of the name Kuti to refer to the former Prime
00:34Minister.
00:35Mukhris recounted treating the matter as a joke when discussing it with family members,
00:41adding that many had speculated about his father's lineage without substantiating their
00:45claims.
00:46Ahmad Zahid's lawyer, Shahrul Fazli Kamarul Zaman, then highlighted to Judicial Commissioner
00:53Gan Techeong that Dr Mahathir had admitted in his statement of claim that his roots trace
00:58back to Kerala, India.
01:01The suit, filed on July 20, 2022, alleged that Zahid made defamatory remarks during
01:07an UMNO division meeting in Kalanajaya on July 30, 2017, referring to Dr Mahathir as
01:14Mahathir the son of Iskandar Kuti.
01:18Ahmad Zahid defended the statement, saying that the name referred to an individual based
01:23on information contained in a copy of an old identity card.
01:28Kuti's testified that his father had always been known as Mahathir bin Mohamad, not Mahathir
01:34bin Mohamad Iskandar.
01:37He further claimed that Ahmad Zahid's remarks had political repercussions for Bersatu, the
01:42party he co-founded with his father in 2016, impacting its performance in the 2018 general
01:49election, where it struggled in many of the 52 seats it contested.
01:54The plaintiff concluded his case on Monday.
01:56The trial will resume on May 14 next year, with Ahmad Zahid, the sole defence witness,
02:02set to testify.