High Court orders TikTok user to pay RM100k to Rosmah for defamation
Judge Datuk Ahmad Shahrir Mohd Salleh ruled that Ku Muhammad Hilmie Ku Din must compensate Rosmah after finding the defamatory content had harmed her reputation.
The court dismissed the claim for exemplary damages, citing insufficient evidence. However, general and aggravated damages were awarded at RM100,000, with an additional five per cent annual interest until full payment. Ku Muhammad Hilmie was also ordered to pay RM20,000 in legal costs.
The defamatory video, posted on March 22, 2023, allegedly linked Rosmah to supernatural practices and immoral conduct. Judge Ahmad Shahrir noted that such accusations carry severe reputational consequences in a society that values religious and moral integrity.
Despite Rosmah's prior conviction in the Sarawak solar hybrid case, the judge clarified that this should not influence the defamation damages assessment.
Her legal team, led by Datuk Abu Bakar Isa Ramat and Mohamed Baharuden Mohamed Ariff, successfully argued that the TikTok post had unjustly tarnished her public image.
Rosmah initially filed the suit in September 2023 after Ku Muhammad Hilmie failed to respond, leading to a default judgment in May last year.
She claimed the video portrayed her as engaging in sinful and idolatrous acts, damaging her standing as the wife of a former prime minister and a charity patron. - Bernama
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