KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 18 — Rapper Caprice, whose real name is Ariz Ramli, is given until October 2 to file his defence statement in a defamation suit filed against him by entrepreneur Muhammad Asyraf Khalid.
Lawyer Abdul Hakeem Aiman, representing Asyraf, said High Court Judge Datuk Anand Ponnudurai also set October 16 for his client to file a reply to the statement of defence and October 17 for case management.
Speaking to the press after the case management today, he said that the defendant also did not object to the plaintiff’s injunction application.
On August 18, Judge Anand ordered Caprice to archive 31 allegedly defamatory posts against Asyraf that were uploaded to his Instagram.
He made the order after allowing an application by Asyraf, the stepson of Biduanita Negara Datuk Seri Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin, for an ex parte ad-interim injunction.
In the suit filed on August 4, Asyraf, 33, claimed that Caprice had published 31 allegedly defamatory posts against him on his Instagram between July 30 and August 2 this year.
He claimed that the posts, among other things, meant that he is a disgrace for inviting Murad Zaidi, who was his personal trainer, on an Audio Siar (Podcast), simply to give the man a chance to defend himself via social media, while ignoring the injuries suffered by the victim due to the man’s actions.
Asyraf added that the posting also implied that he, as the son of Datuk Seri Khalid Mohammad Jiwa or “Dato K”, the husband of Siti, had abused money, power, influence, and family ties to supposedly trap Caprice.
He also claimed that although he had decided not to broadcast the full episode of Murad Zaidi as Caprice wanted, the latter still continued to attack him.
As such, Asyraf sought an injunction to prevent Caprice, its employees, representatives, or agents, from publishing, distributing, spreading, or repeating defamatory postings, whether oral or written, against him on any social media platform and to delete the postings on any social media platform within 24 hours from the date of judgment.
The plaintiff also requested the defendant to make a public apology via video and publish it on all of the defendant’s social media accounts, in addition to claiming general damages, aggravated damages, costs, and other relief deemed appropriate by the court.
