Commercial company in Qatar bemoans defamatory publications of ex-SL employee
Tuesday, 10 December 2013 00:00
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Litigation before Mt. Lavinia District Court to restrain him
Al-Ajjaj Limited Company (AALCo Group) of Qatar filed plaint before the Mount Lavinia District Court against its ex-Sri Lankan employee seeking to restrain him from making defamatory and/or scandalous publications against it.
The Plaintiff Al-Ajjaj Limited Company filed its plaint against Sri Lankan Electrical Engineer W.P. Malintha Silva through Attorneys-at-Law Jehan Kamer Cassim, H.M. Siddeek, Manoj Sanjeewa and Shaha Shums of Intergrated Associates law firm.
The plaintiff in its plaint states that despite the contract of employment being valid for a period of two years whereby the Defendant Malintha Silva had to remain in the State of Qatar for two years, the plaintiff company permitted him leave for a personal matter in June 2010 for a period of two weeks.
It states that the defendant was employed with it for a remuneration of 5,000 Qatar riyals which is equivalent to Sri Lankan Rs. 178,000 with lodging provided.
Even after the company provided increments to the defendant, his work ethic was not up to the expectation of the management of the company and therefore the General Manager issued him a final letter of warning, it states.
The defendant tendered his resignation on the pretext that he wanted to pursue higher studies but the defendant had illegally and unlawfully arrived in the State of Qatar in contravention of Regulations of Expatriates Entry, Departure, Residence and Sponsorship, it laments.
The defendant was defaming and speaking ill of the company to its clients and thus it was then plaintiff became aware that the defendant had arrived illegally and unlawfully to the State of Qatar to gain employment, it states.
The plaintiff company as obliged in the law, it made a complaint to the Manager of Following Up and Research Management Unit of the Ministry of Interior and the defendant was asked to leave the State of Qatar and return to Sri Lanka forthwith, it states.
Whilst the defendant was employed by the plaintiff company, the defendant was assigned projects that were initiated by the ‘Kahramaa’ which is the Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation, its states.
On 3 November this year, 800 persons including the clients of the plaintiff company received an email stating that the Kahramaa is investigating the plaintiff company’s conduct with regards to projects awarded by Kahramaa that had allegedly obtained bribes from the plaintiff company in order to award the contracts to the plaintiff company, it laments.
It claims that it is only the defendant who would have possession of the photographs as the camera was issued to him and the said photographs were taken by the defendant as a part of his employment.
It states that the said photographs annexed to the email were taken by the camera issued to the defendant and thus was in the custody of the defendant.
The plaintiff claimed that the email is defamatory and/or by way of innuendo upon its plain reading by reasonable persons and has brought the plaintiff company into disrepute and/or contempt and/or ridicule in the eyes of the general public and the plaintiff company’s clients.
