Kuala lumpur: The Sessions Court today acquitted activist Badrul Hisham Shaharin, better known as Chegubard, of a sedition charge over a 2024 Facebook post. The alleged publication was said to have tarnished the good name of the King, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Judge Siti Aminah Ghazali made the ruling after finding that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against Badrul Hisham, 48, at the close of its case. "The court finds that there is no prima facie case. Therefore, the accused is acquitted and discharged without being called to enter his defence," the judge stated.

Badrul Hisham faced charges for publishing seditious material on his Facebook page at Taman Bukit Cheras, at 12.15 pm on April 6, 2024. The charge was made under Paragraph 4(1)(c) of the Sedition Act 1948, which carries a fine of up to RM5,000, or imprisonment of up to three years, or both, upon conviction.

Deputy public prosecutor Mohd Sabri Othman led the prosecution team, while lawyers Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali and Nurmustanir Md Nor represented Badrul Hisham in the legal proceedings.