Justice Roslan Mat Nor also ordered Aliff to pay RM50,000 in costs.

In addition, the court ordered Aliff to remove the offending social media postings, refrain from repeating the allegations, and execute an undertaking not to repeat the defamatory statements.

Kadir, 86, a former culture, arts and tourism minister, sued Aliff three years ago over social media posts which Kadir claimed were defamatory of him.

He alleged that Aliff’s claim that he owed “tens of millions of ringgit” had seriously damaged his reputation.

The court held that lawful avenues were available for Aliff to recover the alleged debt, and that the matter could have been resolved in accordance with the law.

The judge also rejected Aliff’s defence that he had no intention of embarrassing Kadir.

“The court finds that the defendant’s act of publishing the statements against the plaintiff (Kadir) was improper and ought not to have been done.

“If the defendant’s true intention was merely to recover the alleged debt, this could have been pursued through the proper legal process,” he said.

The court also held that such an excuse did not justify the defendant’s publication of the statements.

Counsel S Ravichandran represented Kadir while Zulfahmi Abu Bakar represented Aliff.