She said all these allegations by the fifth prosecution witness, Yasmin Nahar Mahmood, a former resident of the welfare home, never happened.

“Yasmin told the court that I told her to keep Bella tied up all the time, give the girl chilli and faeces to eat, splash the girl with hot water, torture her with a hot pan and scold the girl.

“There was no need for me to do all those things to the girl,” she said during examination-in-chief by her lawyer, Farhan Maaruf, at her defence trial.

Siti Bainun was making her defence on charges of neglecting and abusing the 13-year-old Down Syndrome girl.

The woman said she had also never ordered Yasmin and another former resident of Rumah Bonda, known as Aida, to ill-treat Bella as she (Bella) had never caused her any problems.

“I have never hurt anyone although, among the many people at the home, Yasmin was the one who gave me a ‘headache’ every day,” she added.

On Nov 24 last year, judge Izralizam Sanusi had ordered Siti Bainun to enter her defence on both charges after finding that the prosecution had succeeded in proving a prima facie case against her.

She was alleged to have committed the offences at a condominium unit in Wangsa Maju between February and June 2021.

The charge, framed under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, carries imprisonment of up to 20 years or a fine of RM50,000 or both, if convicted.

The hearing continues.