In an emphatic submission, Cyrus Das, representing Semantan Estate Sdn Bhd, said the appeals court was obliged to uphold a declaratory order previously affirmed by the country’s apex court.
In 2009, the High Court ruled that the government had trespassed onto the land and was in unlawful occupation of it following a botched acquisition.
Judicial Commissioner Zura Yahya accordingly declared that Semantan Estate retained a beneficial interest in the subject land.
The decision was upheld by the Federal Court three years later.
“In a democracy, (the government) cannot simply take land and refuse to return it to its rightful owner,” Das told a three-judge panel, chaired by Justice Lee Swee Seng.
He said every attempt by his client to recover ownership of land had been unsuccessful.
“If the court cannot enforce its ruling, then there will also be a breakdown in law. The government must respect and comply with the judicial pronouncement,” he added.
Das, a former Malaysian Bar president, said Semantan Estate wants the land to be transferred first to its name. He said the government could then acquire it at the current market value.
However, he said the government must also compensate his client for illegally occupying the land since 1956.
“Semantan Estate wants to exercise its constitutional right to property. Any move to provide adequate compensation under Section 29(1)(b) of the Government Proceedings Act is untenable,” he added.
In reply, senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan submitted that Zura’s 2009 ruling was merely declaratory and could not be executed.
Shamsul said the government’s appeal should be allowed as it has a right over the land on grounds of public interest.
He said the court was entitled to award Semantan Estate compensation.
“This court is entitled under Section 69(4) of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964 to declare that mesne profits awarded by the High Court in 2009 be termed as compensation or damages for deprivation of the land.
“This means profit is to be assessed from the date when the land was acquired – Dec 3, 1956 – until the date of the 2009 order plus interest,” he added.
The government is appealing a High Court ruling handed down on Aug 7 last year compelling the Kuala Lumpur land registrar to transfer the 106ha land to Semantan Estate.
Semantan Estate, meanwhile, is appealing a 2021 High Court ruling dismissing its application for a mandamus order to compel the registrar to transfer the land to the company.
Shamsul said a mandamus order was not feasible in the circumstances of the case.
“It is practically impossible to transfer the property to Semantan Estate as roads and buildings have been constructed,” he said.
However, Semantan Estate contends that the Aug 7 ruling cannot be rescinded as it was premised on the 2012 Federal Court decision.
The court was told previously that the property is now valued at RM12 billion.
In 2017, Semantan Estate initiated the current lawsuit seeking to compel the Kuala Lumpur land registrar to transfer the subject land to its name pursuant to the 2009 court order.
The application was granted by Justice Ahmad Shahrir Salleh on Aug 7 last year.
The Duta Enclave, acquired by the federal government in 1956, houses the National Archives, the Kuala Lumpur shariah court and other government complexes.
It has also quietly witnessed the construction of several other government complexes, sports facilities and other landmarks.
The panel, which also comprised Justices Azimah Omar and Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh, adjourned the appeal pending its decision.