PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang has escaped from paying damages to a Sabah lawyer who had taken him to court over purported negative remarks the PAS leader made on Christianity.

The Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court on Monday allowed his application to set aside the judgment in default delivered on Aug 12, 2016.

Hadi argued that he did not receive the writ of summons filed by Sabah lawyer Marcel Jude Joseph and did not know he had to appear in court.

Hadi was represented by Sabah PAS deputy chairperson Hamid Ismail, PAS legal bureau secretary Ahmad Lutfi Awang said in a statement.

On Aug 12, Hadi, who is Marang MP, was ordered to pay Marcel, 54, damages for interference with the constitutional right of the plaintiff to freedom of religion under Article 11 of the Federal Constitution.

Marcel had applied for a judgment as Hadi did not turn up in court, and the court then issued a certificate of non-appearance by the defendant.

Hadi was purportedly served with the summons by Marcel’s lawyer on July 19.

Marcel, who is a member of the Sabah Bar and a member of the Sabah Catholic Lawyers Apostolate, filed the suit against Hadi on his statement, which was alleged to be blasphemous and an unlawful interference with the plaintiff's constitutional right to freedom of worship.

This was based on a re-published article by online portal Free Malaysia Today, titled “Christianity rejected by the educated, says Hadi”, quoting the PAS leader from an article in the Islamic party organ Harakah.

Marcel claimed that the defendant made defamatory statements in the first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth paragraphs of the said article.

The aforementioned statements were calculated to make negative and false inferences of the plaintiff and his faith and religious belief, Marcel said in his suit.