She said those in the legal fraternity had also pointed out that the police action was inappropriate.
“It is difficult to understand how a defence which mentions me, and is taken by a defendant to resist a defamation action filed voluntarily by a Malaysian politician in a London court, (and thus protected by absolute privilege), can constitute a criminal offence in Malaysia.
“I only wish to add that in my view this investigation follows a concerted effort by parties linked with the claimant in the civil action in the UK, to harass and intimidate me in connection with the defence filed by the defendant,” she said in a statement today.
Police reportedly said they would investigate the former Bersih 2.0 chairman under Section 505 (b) of the Penal Code and Section 233 of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission Act 1998 (MCMC Act 1998), based on a report lodged by Umno’s grassroots movement chairman Zulkarnain Mahdar.
Section 505 (b) deals with the publication and circulation of material with the intent to cause alarm to the public.
Ambiga said there also seemed to be a lack of appreciation that harassing and intimidating a potential witness was viewed seriously by the courts and would be tantamount to contempt.
Ambiga was recently named by Clare as the person who had revealed information that PAS leaders had received money from Prime Minister Najib Razak, as stated in an article published in Sarawak Report in August last year.
The article said RM90 million was paid to top PAS leaders to woo them into supporting Umno and Barisan Nasional.
Last April, Hadi filed a defamation suit against Clare at the London High Court.