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SEREMBAN - Badrul Hisham Shaharin, better known as Chegubard, pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court here today to a charge of publishing seditious material against the Negeri Sembilan Royal Institution via his Facebook account last month.
The 48-year-old political activist entered the plea before Judge Datin Surita Budin after the charge was read out to him.
According to the charge, he is alleged to have published seditious content on Facebook under the account Che GuBard on May 26 at approximately 8.30pm in Kuala Pilah.
He was charged under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act 1948, which carries a maximum fine of RM5,000 or imprisonment of up to three years, or both, upon conviction.
Deputy public prosecutor Datuk Ahmad Sazali Omar proposed bail at RM10,000 and applied for the court to issue a gag order prohibiting Badrul Hisham from making any statements concerning the Negeri Sembilan Royal Institution.
However, Badrul Hisham’s lawyer, Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali, applied for bail to be reduced to RM2,500 and objected to the gag order sought against his client.
The court subsequently set bail at RM5,000 with one surety, along with an additional condition that the accused must report to the nearest police station on a monthly basis.
The court also dismissed the application for the gag order, while setting Aug 3 as the next case mention date. - BERNAMA