KELANTAN prince Tengku Muhammad Fakhry, 32, has launched a blistering multimillion ringgit defamation suit against his estranged 17-year-old wife Manohara Odelia.

The amount could not be ascertained but sources said it could be the highest involving alienated couples in Malaysia.

The Tengku Temenggong Kelantan began the process of filing the massive defamation suit against Manohara and his mother-in-law Daisy Fajarina, 44, this morning. His lawyer, Mohd Haaziq Pillay, confirmed that they are seeking leave from the Kuala Lumpur High Court to file a writ of summons for defamation out of jurisdiction in Jakarta where mother and daughter are now living.

Haaziq said leave must first be obtained from the court as the matter involves both Indonesians who are out of its jurisdiction. He declined further comment. The outcome of the application for leave was not known at Press time.

The defamation suit is the latest in a series of legal actions undertaken by Tengku Fakhry who recently filed two applications in the Kelantan syariah court — one seeking reconciliation with his wife and the other ordering Daisy and Manohara to pay him nearly RM1 million that he claims they owe him.

The case is set for mention on Aug 2. He had earlier made a police report against Manohara, accusing her of making allegations of rape, torture and imprisonment. The latest legal step is another effort by Tengku Fakhry to bring a quick end to such accusations that have also tarnished the name of the Kelantan palace.

This action might just see Manohara and Daisy finally responding through their lawyers. They have so far neither responded to the earlier legal actions filed by the prince nor made a police report against him for abuse. Even a medical report purportedly confirming that Manohara had been cut with razor blades has not been made public, raising doubts about its authenticity.

Manohara and Daisy reportedly have a battery of eight lawyers led by Hotman Paris Hutapea. Their Malaysian lawyer, Mohamed Zaini Mazlan, has also not contacted Haaziq with respect to the threatened litigation against Tengku Fakhry in Malaysia.

Haaziq and Zainul Rijal are overseeing the common law and Islamic law matters respectively for Tengku Fakhry. The multi-million ringgit suit is certain to heighten public focus on the royal couple’s ravaged relationship. It also comes on the day when Manohara makes her acting debut in a soap opera that airs on Indonesian TV channel RCTI this evening.

The 25-episode drama is based loosely on Manohara’s life with Tengku Fakhry. Her move to concentrate on acting and making money instead of settling her issues with Tengku Fakhry has begun to make her unpopular even in Indonesia.

The battling couple separated on June 1 after nine months of marriage. She returned to Jakarta on June 1, after the royal couple had gone to visit the Sultan of Kelantan in hospital.

Since then, it was revealed that Daisy had been sentenced to 18 months’ jail in absentia in France for submitting her adopted daughter Shaliha to undignified working conditions and assault, dating back to 1998 in France.

She remains a fugitive while her husband, Juergen Reiner Pinot, served four months in jail for the same offence and sexual assault of Shaliha.

Pinot arrived in Jakarta last week to lend Manohara and Daisy moral support, raising anger among Indonesians who felt someone who had raped and ill-treated an Indonesian (Shaliha) should not be welcome there.

She’s not without help

WITH the multi-million ringgit defamation suit, the pressure keeps piling on Manohara and Daisy to respond — and they are not without help:

● The Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry has said it was willing to assist Manohara to file a report with Malaysian police.
● The ministry is also prepared to file the report on Manohara’s behalf provided she produces all the evidence.
● Indonesia has also advised Manohara to make a police report in Malaysia with the help of the Foreign Ministry.
● The Malaysian government has promised no cover up and a thorough investigation into allegations against Tengku Fakhry.
● They reportedly have eight lawyers in Indonesia and one in Malaysia.