The Shah Alam Community Forest Society (SACF) said the state government had acted unlawfully in excising the land without prior notice and a public inquiry, and without providing a replacement piece of land.

This comes after Selangor forestry director Ahmad Fadzil Abdul Majid said the decision to take over the land was made after considering the comments from the Selangor state legal adviser’s office.

“We reject his explanation,” the society said in a statement, adding that Ahmad Fadzil had also failed to address the legal requirement to replace the excised area, which had been in existence since 1984, with another plot of land.

SACF also said Ahmad Fadzil’s statement contradicted a statement by state environment committee chairman Hee Loy Sian, who claimed that the Bukit Cherakah land was degazetted in 2006.

“Hee refused to meet us to substantiate that claim. It is clear that no excision was completed in 2006 and he should apologise for misleading the public,” it said.

It said the latest move were “attempts to backdate the excision to Nov 20, 2000”.

In his statement on Saturday, Ahmad Fadzil said this was due to various factors that had put the process on hold, but SACF said this was a “contradictory statement”.

“If the excision process had been put on hold until this year, then the requirement for holding the public inquiry must still apply,” it said.

It also claimed there was an obvious conflict of interest involving Selangor menteri besar Amirudin Shari as the land was being cleared for a housing project by the state-owned Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor (PKNS).

“We call on the menteri besar to halt the forest clearance until a public inquiry is completed,” it said.