MUHAMMAD ZAHIER ZAKWAN BIN ZAINAL ABIDIN v Pendakwa Raya

ja-42ors-1-12-2025 High Court (Mahkamah Tinggi) 4 March 2026 • JA-42(Ors)-1-12/2025 • 24 min read

5 cases cited (0 SG, 5 foreign)

Catchwords

CRIMINAL PROCEDURE: Preliminary objection – Competency of charge – Territorial jurisdiction of Sessions Court – Charge framed under Pahang Emblems, Titles or Awards (Prevention of Improper Use) Enactment 2017 (Enactment No. 18 of 2017) in respect of conduct occurring in State of Johor – Whether Sessions Court of Johor Bahru has territorial and subject-matter jurisdiction to hear and determine charge founded on Pahang state enactment – Whether s. 17 Offences Relating to Awards Act 2017 (Act 787) operates as federal jurisdictional bridge conferring criminal jurisdiction on court at place where conduct allegedly occurred – Whether court erred in invoking s. 17 Act 787 of its own motion without express invitation from prosecution – Principle of iura novit curia – Whether court is confined to statutory provisions raised by parties in determining jurisdictional question CRIMINAL PROCEDURE: Charges – Defect in charge – Mandatory contents of charge – s. 152(4) Criminal Procedure Code – Whether omission of s. 17 Act 787 from charge constitutes fatal defect – Distinction between offence-defining provisions and jurisdictional enabling provisions – Whether jurisdictional enabling provision constitutes "law and section against which offence is committed" requiring mandatory citation under s. 152(4) CPC – Whether accused prejudiced by omission – Whether failure of justice occasioned – Curative provisions – ss. 158 and 422 CPC – Whether defect in charge curable where no actual prejudice demonstrated CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: Legislative competence – Federal and state – Territorial limitation on state legislation – Art. 73 Federal Constitution – Whether state enactment has extraterritorial reach beyond borders of enacting state – Parliamentary legislative competence under Art. 74(1) Federal Constitution – Whether Parliament competent to enact federal provision creating parallel federal offence for conduct falling within scheduled state law when occurring outside that state's territory – Effect of s. 17 Act 787 as exercise of federal legislative competence to address extraterritorial enforcement gap arising from constitutional territorial limitation on state legislation

Judges (1)

Atan Mustaffa Yussof Ahmad Delivered

Counsel (6)

Abdul Raman Saad & Associates Firm Pejabat Penasihat Undang-Undang Negeri Johor Firm Abdul Raman bin Hj Saad Counsel Appellant Yaacob bin Hj Md Sam Counsel Appellant Zainursyazwani binti Zakaria Counsel Appellant Zuhainie binti Zull Kafli Counsel Respondent

Parties (2)

Pendakwa Raya Respondent Muhammad Zahier Zakwan bin Zainal Abidin Appellant

Statutes Cited

Awards Act 2017 (Cap 787)

Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 593)

Federal Constitution

Art 73 Art 74(1) Art 76

Penal Code (Cap 574)

Cases Cited (5)

MY (5)

[1962] 1 MLRH 99 [1993] 2 MLJ 551 [2003] 1 MLRH 543 [2010] 11 MLRH 765 [2015] 6 MLJ 509

Judgment

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Source: eJudgment (ja-42ors-1-12-2025)