Counsel K Vinu said this was to allow them to reply to contentions made by lawyers representing Perak Hydro Renewable Energy Corporation Sdn Bhd and Conso Hydro.

“In the meantime, an ad-interim injunction issued on Oct 14 will continue, pending the disposal of the injunction application,” Vinu said.

Judicial Commissioner G Bhupinder Singh had on Oct 14 said the companies or their agents could not encroach on the land and carry out construction. The temporary restraining order was issued to ensure the status quo remained.

A group of 22 Orang Asli settlers from Ulu Geruntum, Gopeng, filed the injunction application on Oct 9 but lawyers for the developers said they needed time to respond. The hearing was scheduled for today.

Two years ago, the Orang Asli settlers filed a suit naming the companies, Perak government, Orang Asli Development Department director-general, Perak Lands and Mines Department, and the federal government as defendants.

The plaintiffs want the dam work stopped as it infringed the community’s rights to their ancestral land which they claim was cleared without consent.

The settlers, who are from the Semai tribe, come from six villages in the Ulu Geruntum area namely Kampung Sungai Kapor, Kampung Sat, Kampung Ulu Kepayang, Kampung Empang Main, Kampung Poh dan Kampung Ulu Geruntum.

The two private companies started the project in Sungai Geruntum in 2012.

The settlers said the project destroyed fruit orchards and about 50 ancestral burial grounds without permission from the Semai people in Ulu Geruntum, adding that the water source was also contaminated.

Among the declarations and injunctions sought by the plaintiffs are that they are the legal owners of the ancestral land and that the defendants have no right to damage or extinguish their land rights.

They are also seeking an order from the court for the companies to vacate the land immediately and compensate the plaintiffs for the encroachment.

The group also wants the court to order the federal and state governments to compensate them.

The main trial date will be fixed after the disposal of the injunction.