Govt Appeals Against Court Leave For Legal Challenge Over Kvdt2 Rail Project

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The government is appealing to quash the court leave for contractor Dhaya Maju LTAT Sdn Bhd to commence legal challenge against its decision to terminate the contract of the Klang Valley Double Tracking 2 (KVDT2) rail project.
The two respondents in the legal action - the government and Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong - have gone to the Court of Appeal to set aside the leave granted by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on April 14 this year.
Through the judicial review application filed on Sept 3 last year, Dhaya Maju LTAT seeks a court declaration that the minister's decision to cancel the KVDT2 contract and to reopen the tender is null and void.
Senior federal counsel Ahmad Hanir Hanbaly @ Arwi confirmed the two respondents have filed the appeal when contacted by the media this afternoon.
“Yes, we have appealed,” said Hanir, who is from the Attorney-General’s Chambers, adding that the appeal was filed on April 20.
The present judicial review proceedings will come up for case management before the Kuala Lumpur High Court on July 5.
Prior to this, Dhaya Maju LTAT had filed two other related legal actions against the government, claiming that the termination was unlawful.
One of these is a legal action seeking to nullify a letter issued by the government dated Sept 23 last year to terminate the contract to the project.
In August 2020, Wee announced that the government would reopen the tender for the KVDT2 rail project, alleging that investigations found the RM4.475 billion price tag for the project was too high, despite cost-cutting measures made by the previous Pakatan Harapan administration.
The project came into the spotlight after Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz revealed details of the 101 contracts that were purportedly awarded through a direct negotiation process during the time Harapan was in power.
KVDT2 is the largest contract, in terms of value, on the list.

Former bar council chairperson Lim Chee Wee is acting for Dhaya Maju LTAT. - Mkini

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