Salleh Ben Joned dies at 79

KUALA LUMPUR: Writer and poet Salleh Ben Joned died of heart failure, today.

The 79-year-old breathed his last at his house in Subang Jaya, at 1.21 this morning.

According to his family, Salleh had difficulty breathing while at home before being taken to the University of Malaya Medical Center (UMMC) and was pronounced dead.

Salleh's body was brought to the Abu Bakar As-Siddiq Mosque, Subang Jaya for prayers at 10 am earlier.

Due to the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO), only family and close relatives allowed to participate in the funeral process.

Salleh, who has also acted in films, is a bold character and is often labeled as the 'bad boy' of Malaysian literature by many parties.

He also criticized many taboos on race, religion, sexuality and some other issues.