KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 28 — Police have received seven reports in connection with an issue involving Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh.

Dang Wangi district police chief Assistant Commissioner Sulizmie Affendy Sulaiman today confirmed the reports were lodged several days ago.

“I confirm that Dang Wangi district police headquarters has received seven reports on a case involving her (Yeoh),” Sulizmie said, as reported by The Star.

“The matter is still under investigation,” he added.

The reports followed a call by an NGO for Yeoh to resign after the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed her defamation suit against former Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan.

The court ruled on Monday, December 23, that Yeoh failed to prove the defendant’s statements were defamatory.

Judicial Commissioner Arziah Mohamed Apandi said, “I find that in this case, the occasion (where the forum was held) to be privileged, no malice was proven, and the defendant had reasonable grounds for his statements based on the plaintiff’s admissions and writings (in her book Becoming Hannah) and the publication (of the defendant’s statements) was beyond his control.”

Arziah emphasised that constitutional rights to freedom of expression must be robustly protected, particularly in matters of public interest and statements made during privileged occasions.

Yeoh’s counsel filed an appeal on Thursday, December 26, seeking to challenge the High Court’s decision.

Yeoh said that while she respects the judicial process, she has instructed her counsel to request that the appeal be heard expeditiously.

She added that the court had not provided full written grounds of judgment.

“As of now, only a brief explanation is available, listed in writing on the court’s e-review system on December 23,” Yeoh said.

“It would be premature at this stage to draw any conclusions about the High Court’s overall decision and the reasons behind it,” she added.

Yeoh filed the defamation suit in 2020 over Musa’s remarks made during a forum at Universiti Teknologi Mara on January 30 that year.

She alleged that Musa falsely claimed she wrote her book to turn Malaysia into a Christian nation, had links with evangelists and Jews to undermine Islam and Malaysia, and prioritised her interests over the nation’s.

Yeoh said that the statements were untrue, baseless, and made with malicious intent to damage her reputation.