KOTA KINABALU, Nov. 21 -- Non-government organisation Pertubuhan Kebajikan Ekonomi Semangat Bersatu Malaysia (Pembela Malaysia) is seeking to cancel the ongoing court investigation into the death of 13-year-old Zara Qairina Mahathir, asserting that proceedings were not conducted in accordance with the local inquest law.

Its president Datuk Seri Mohd Jeffry Rosman said the courts should have followed Sabah's Inquest Ordinance 1959, a legislation that specifically governs how inquests must be carried out locally.

"Despite this, the authorities conducted Zara's inquest under the Criminal Procedure Code, a federal law not intended to override Sabah's local inquest law. This is unlawful, ultra vires and in excess of jurisdiction," he said. ...