In an e-review session with the parties, judge Nasir Nordin ordered Ramasamy to pay Koris RM10,000 in costs, the plaintiff’s lawyer Shamsher Singh Thind said when contacted.

Ramasamy had sued Koris, the Penang Consumer Protection Association president, over comments in an article published by news portal The Vibes last year.

The suit was over claims that Ramasamy, as chairman of the Penang Hindu Endowments Board at the time, failed to improve access to a hilltop Murugan temple here, such as by introducing a cable car or elevator.

In the article, Koris said he was advocating for better access to the temple, pointing to a Japanese firm’s proposal for a cable car which he had shared with Ramasamy.

While The Vibes and its reporter settled the suit with Ramasamy earlier this year by removing the article and issuing an apology, the case against Koris continued.

During the trial, Koris said he did not know the reporter was working for The Vibes and believed their conversation was a personal discussion.

Koris also told the court that he was not an active social media user.

Ramasamy later told FMT that he had asked his lawyer to appeal the decision.