KUALA LUMPUR (March 10): Former Batu Berendam member of parliament (MP) Datuk Mohd Tamrin Abdul Ghafar has claimed trial at the Johor Baru Sessions Court today over allegations of posting an offensive article on Facebook last year against the Crown Pince of Johor Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim or TMJ as he is known. 

Tamrin, the son of the late former deputy prime minister Tun Ghafar Baba, was charged under Section 233(1)(a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998. The section concerns the improper use of network facilities to post any content that is obscene, indecent, false, menacing or offensive in character with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass another person. 

If convicted, Tamrin may be sentenced to up to a year in prison or a fine of up to RM50,000 or both.

Sessions Court judge Wan Norisham Wan Yaakob imposed a bail of RM8,000 and fixed the next case mention for May 23, according to Tamrin's lawyer Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali.

Tamrin posted an article on his blog tamrintunghafar.blogspot.com in February last year entitled "TMJ — Bodoh Sombong Yang Tak Boleh Di Ajar”, criticising Tunku Ismail for taking a position against the then prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. The article was also shared on his Facebook profile.

Among other remarks, Tamrin said the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and Raja Permaisuri Agong, who are TMJ’s uncle and aunt respectively, should advise Tunku Ismail that royals are forbidden under the constitution from getting involved with politics.

A few days after that, Tamrin was called up by the federal police for questioning, during which he spent three hours giving his statement over the matter. 

Tamrin, who was once a former Mara chairman, was an MP for Batu Berendam from 1986 to 1995 while with Umno. He later joined PAS in 2012 but has since left the party.