Cow head protestors will be charged in court

There is enough evidence to charge the cow head protestors of Section 23, Shah Alam, said Attorney General Tan Sri Gani Patail.

“I have decided to charge those who carried and spoke while stepping on the cow head under Sect 4 (1) of the Sedition Act alternatively Section 298 of the Penal Code.

“They as well the other demonstrators will also face another charge under section 27 (5) of the Police Act for illegal assembly,” he said in a press statement on Monday.

He said that the police had submitted their investigation papers to him personally on Monday afternoon and he was satisfied that, based on the facts and evidence gathered by the police, the demonstrators should be taken to court.

Residents of Section 23 in Shah Alam had staged a protest last week against the Pakatan Rakyat-led Selangor Government’s decision to relocate a 150-year-old temple from Section 19 to their Malay-majority area.

One of them had carried cow's head and stepped on it.

On Monday the state government said that an alternate site in Section 23 had been identified for the relocation of the temple.

The manner of the protest drew heavy criticism from various parties, including members of the public, for insulting religious sensitivities.

Residents, on the other hand, had filed a police report to say that the parade of the cow’s head was meant to be a symbol of the “stupidity of the government”, and was not meant as a religious insult to the Hindus.

The fear of stoking religious sentiments led to the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) directing news portal, Malaysiakini, to remove footage and videos on the cow’s head protest from its website immediately following numerous public complaints.

Last week, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said that he left it to the AG to determine if there were any violations of law when the residents staged the protest.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein also met with the association and representatives of residents of Section 23 in Shah Alam to find a resolution the issue.

Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, instead, was adamant that the Section 19 temple be relocated to Section 23, unless the residents and other interested parties could propose a more suitable location.

Since the incident, the police have recorded statements from more than 100 people to assist investigations into the matter.