IPOH: Senior forensic pathologist Datuk Seri Dr Bhupinder Singh will appear as a witness at the hearing of a civil suit brought by the family of naval cadet officer J. Soosaimanicckam who died while undergoing training in 2018.
The deceased’s brother, Charles Joseph, 38, said Dr Bhupinder will be dissecting Soosaimanicckam’s post-mortem report during the trial in Kuala Lumpur today.
Dr Bhupinder is currently an associate professor attached to the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland & University College Dublin Malaysia Campus (RUMC).
In March this year, the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court had started hearing the negligence suit brought by the family over Soosaimanicckam’s untimely death.
The suit filed on May 19, 2021, named the government and 14 others as defendants.
The suit alleged that the defendants had failed to give the deceased timely treatment.
It also claims that Soosaimanicckam was abused by several parties named in the suit.
On June 16 last year, the Sessions Court, which sat as a Coroner’s Court, returned an open verdict after coroner Ainul Shahrin Mohamad revealed that the cause of Soosaimanicckam’s death on May 19, 2018 was pulmonary oedema.
Yesterday, the High Court here set aside the coroner’s open verdict and revised it to homicide.
High Court Justice Abdul Wahab Mohamed ruled that the cause of death was pulmonary oedema caused by leptospirosis; and that the untimely death was a direct consequence of the Malaysian Royal Navy (TLDM) officers in charge of cadet training in not allowing the deceased to seek medical treatment.
Charles and his father S. Joseph, 71, were in court for yesterday’s proceedings.
Joseph said he was grateful for the decision granted by the High Court.
“We are satisfied with the decision. At the same time, we hope to prove our suit at the KL Sessions Court,” he said.
When met outside the court, lawyer for the family Zaid Malek said he was grateful for the decision by the High Court.
“The deceased’s family has long been seeking justice and we’re grateful that the High Court has run through the facts well and has proven justice here,” he said.
Zaid also said immediate steps should be taken to revamp the way naval training is being conducted as there was a failure in the system to ensure Soosaimanicckam’s safety during training.
