Chini by-election: Police open two investigation papers

Pahang police have opened two investigation papers relating to the Chini state by-election thus far, said its chief Datuk Abd Jalil Hassan.

He said one of them involved a report by police regarding one of the candidates' supporter for allegedly behaving in rowdy manner in front of the nomination centre at Pekan National Youth Skills Institute (IKBN) near here, last Saturday.

Another investigation paper involved a report by an independent candidate who claimed his picture was misused to represent one of the non-contesting parties in the by-election, which went viral on social media.

He said the cases were being investigated under the Defamation Act 1957 and the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, however no arrest has been made so far.

"We also advise all candidates to continue to adhere to the law and standard operating procedure (SOP) set by the Election Commission (EC).

"We hope the favourable atmosphere in the first few days of the campaign to continue so that Chini state by-election can serve as a model for the future by-elections in the country," he told reporters after monitoring the reopening of school session at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Tengku Panglima Perang Tengku Muhammad here, today.

The Chini state by-election on July 4 is a three-cornered fight between Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Mohd Sharim Md Zain, 41, and two independent candidates Tengku Datuk Zainul Hisham Tengku Hussin, 64, and Mohd Shukri Mohd Ramli, 49, following the death of its incumbent Datuk Seri Abu Bakar Harun (BN) on May 7.

-- BERNAMA