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The hearing of blogger Rocky's application to strike out the defamation suit by the New Straits Times Press (NSTP) and four others has been adjourned to April 2.

Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Hishamuddin Yunus made the decision in chambers today after hearing the request for adjournment from Rocky’s lawyers Edmund Bon and Malik Imtiaz Sarwar.

January 4, The NSTP, its deputy chairperson Kalimullah Hassan, chief executive officer Syed Faisal Albar, group editor-in-chief Hishamudin Aun and former group editor Brendan Pereira filed a defamation suit against Rocky, and the Statement of Claims was served on Rocky subsequently.

The plaintiffs also applied for an inter-parte injunction to require Rocky, a former editor of the Malay Mail within the NSTP Group, to remove 48 articles from his weblog and restrain him from further publishing articles defamatory to them.

January 25, Rocky applied to have the suit struck out on the basis that the claims by the plaintiffs were 'fatally deficient'.

"We had applied to have the suit struck out on the ground that the plaintiffs had not pleaded their defamation suit as clearly as they ought to under the law," said Bon, Rocky's lawyer, when he recapped the legal process for the benefit of reporters who covered the hearing yesterday. (See YouTube videoclip for Bon's statement yesterday.)

Edmund Bon explaining the latest development to reporters... LensaPress photo

'Some documents served hours before hearing started'

Subsequently, the plaintiff amended the claims, and it was learned that three volumes of the amended documents were served by Messrs. Shearn Delamore on Rocky's solicitors, Chooi & Co., last Friday (February 16), a day ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays.

According to barrister Bon, the plaintiffs' lawyers had also served his firm the fourth volume of documents -- plaintiffs' reply to affidavits -- around 11.00am this morning, practically hours before today's hearing was scheduled to begin at 2.30pm. [ See Bernama for a related story. ]

As such, Bon said, the amendments have to be looked at closely before a decision on the next course of action can be made.

However, Bon added that, under the law, the plaintiffs could continue with their amendments so long as the defence has not closed the case.

According to parties familiar with the suit, Rocky has two options for his next course of action.

ONE: Rocky may continue with his application to have the suit struck out.

TWO: Rocky may withdraw his application to strike out the suit. The next step would then be the hearing proper of the case.

“We would have to look and see if it is satisfactory to our purposes and proceed with one or the other option,” Bon told Malaysiakini when contacted yesterday.

March 6: Hearing of Jeff Ooi's strike-out application

The hearing of another defamation suit against this blogger -- who was also sued by The NSTP, two employees and one former employee -- has been scheduled for March 6.

The plaintiffs had also amended their original Statement of Claims after this blogger applied to have the suit struck out.

Rocky has an entry on today's hearing in chambers. He said the suit has not distracted him from blogging.

Bloggers United... Sebulan gagung

Someone was very kind to bring along a cake to commemorate the First-month anniversary of Bloggers United.

Parti Keadilan Information Chief Tian Chua, who was attending the hearing of the 10-year-old APCETII case on the same floor of the High Court, popped by the canteen to share our Blogger United cake.

Pictures courtesy Shahabudeen Jalil ( shahabudeenjalil.blogspot.com )

Columnist-blogger MarinaM, who had earlier joined us for Kak Maria's mee rebus in the morning, helped us place the candle at the tight place.