Lawyer P Uthayakumar has filed a committal proceeding for contempt of court against five local authority officials at Kuala Lumpur High Court crime division today.

He named five key individuals as respondents. They are Federal Territory Minister Zul Hasnan Rafiq, Selangor Menteri Besar Dr Mohd Khir Toyo, KL Mayor Ruslin Hassan, Federal Territory Land and Mineral Department director Nasir Hassan and Local Government and Housing Ministry secretary-general Ahmad Fuad Ismail.

The committal proceeding was filed after local authorities demolished Sri Maha Nageswari temple at Ampang in February despite an ex parte injunction dated 18 December 2006 that prohibits them from doing so.

The injunction states that the respondents or their workers are prohibited from demolishing and breaking deities in any temples in Malaysia until the court decides on the future of temples, or they face six months imprisonment.

"This is the second proceeding we're filing. The first one was filed after the authorities demolished a temple in Semenyih on Dec 29 last year," said Uthayakumar.

According to Uthayakumar, these demolitions are criminal trespass as we have court orders to stop them from doing it," he added.

He said that the 55-year-old Sri Maha Nageswary temple has an estimated number of 500 devotees who are mostly of the working class and they had celebrated the temple's annual festival merely days before the demolition exercise.

Uthayakumar's lawyer M Manoharan wants the court to decide on the matter soon.

Unbearable stench

"The devotees were deprived of their constitutional rights of practicing any religion they want to," said Manoharan.

"The government and authorities are conspiring with developers to demolish these temples," he added.

Manoharan also said that they will file a committal proceeding for each and every unlawful demolition carried out by the authorities.

K Govindamah, a devotee of Sri Kumaravel Temple in Kg Lindungan that was also demolished in recent months said that the temple was relocated to a ground beside sewage tanks.

"The sewage pipes that run under the temple cause unbearable stench. Hindus generally serve food after each prayer and how do they expect us to tolerate that condition?" asked Govindamah.

According to her, almost 5000 residents at the village are without a temple and they are hesitant to use the relocated temple.

"They (authorities) are humiliating our religion," she added.