Lawyer Shaharudin Ali said the application on behalf of his client Ikatan Guru-Guru Muslim Malaysia would be filed at the High Court in Kota Baru tomorrow.
“We will invoke Order 34, Rule 6 (2) of the Rules of Court 2012 to reinstate the suit,” he said.
Shaharudin claimed that he was not present during the case management on Sunday before judge Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh as he had a serious eye condition.
“I was under medication and at home due to the conditional movement control order (CMCO),” he said, adding that his legal firm in Kota Damansara, Petaling Jaya was located in a Covid-19 red zone.
The court on its own motion annulled the suit but with no order to costs.
Federal Counsel Nik Nur Adila Mat Zaidan, represented the education minister and the government who were the defendants.
Parties were scheduled to appear and update the judge on several preliminary matters.
Lawyer T Gunaseelan, who represented three language-based interest groups to intervene in the action, told FMT the judge struck out the suit as no lawyers for the plaintiff were present.
The plaintiff last month opposed an application by the Chinese Language Council, Tamil Language Association and Confederation of Former Tamil School Pupils and the government to have the action filed in the High Court here to be transferred to Kuala Lumpur.
The plaintiff also opposed the three groups’ attempt to be made parties on grounds there were already two others who have intervened.
The parties that had intervened earlier were MCA and the United Chinese School Committees’ Association of Malaysia (Dong Zong).
In August, the three interest groups filed the intervener application on grounds they had a direct interest in the case and would be aggrieved parties should the plaintiff succeed in their action.
The plaintiff, Mohd Azizee Hasan, who is Ikatan Guru-Guru Muslim Malaysia president, filed the suit on behalf of his organisation in February. He is challenging the constitutionality of Sections 17 and 28 of the Education Act.
Gabungan Pelajar Melayu Semenanjung and Majlis Pembangunan Pendidikan Islam Malaysia filed similar suits in Kuala Lumpur in February.
Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) also filed a similar cause of action in Kuala Lumpur in March.
Isma president Aminuddin Yahaya is seeking an order that the two provisions in the Education Act, which allow the use of Chinese and Tamil languages as the medium of instruction in vernacular schools, are against Article 152 of the Federal Constitution.
Article 152 states that Bahasa Melayu is the national language of Malaysia.