KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 22 — Rumah Bonda founder Siti Bainun Ahd Razali told the Sessions Court here today that a Down syndrome teenage girl, known as Bella, was never asked to eat chilli and faeces, bound and splashed with hot water and tortured with a hot pan.

She said the incident never happened to Bella as claimed by fifth prosecution witness (SP5) Yasmin Nahar Mahmood, who is a former resident of the welfare home, in her testimony.

"From what I can remember, Yasmin told the court that I told her to keep Bella tied up all the time, give the girl chilli and faeces to eat, splashed the girl with hot water, torture her with a hot pan and scolded the girl. There was no need for me to do all those things to the girl,” she said during examination-in-chief by her lawyer, Mohammad Farhan Maaruf at her defence trial.

Siti Bainun was making her defence on charges of neglecting and abusing the 13-year-old Down syndrome girl.

The woman said she also had never ordered Yasmin and another former resident of Rumah Bonda, known as Aida, to ill-treat Bella or told them to splash hot water on the girl as she (Bella) had never caused her problems.

Questioned by Mohammad Farhan about Yasmin’s statement that she (Siti Bainun) ordered her to feed Bella with chilli, Siti Bainun said such a thing had never happened to her wards.

"I have never hurt anyone, although, among the many people in the house, Yasmin was the one who gave me a headache every day,” she added.

On Nov 24 last year, Izralizam ordered Siti Bainun to enter her defence on both charges after finding that the prosecution had succeeded in proving a prima facie case against her.

She was alleged to have committed the offences in a condominium unit in Wangsa Maju between February and June 2021.

The charge, framed under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, carries imprisonment for up to 20 years or a fine of RM50,000 or both, if convicted

The hearing before Judge Izralizam Sanusi continues. — Bernama