‘No status quo to maintain': Court of Appeal rejects Hydroshoppe's bid to block KL Tower deal

PUTRAJAYA, May 31 — The Court of Appeal yesterday dismissed an appeal by the former operator of the Kuala Lumpur Tower and its subsidiary to obtain an ad interim injunction to stop the award of the KL Tower concession to LSH Service Master Sdn Bhd.
The decision was delivered by a three-member bench comprising Justices Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah, Datuk Dr Choo Kah Sing and Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh.
Justice Sequerah, who delivered the court's unanimous decision, said Hydroshoppe Sdn Bhd and its subsidiary Menara Kuala Lumpur Sdn Bhd failed to meet the legal threshold for the grant of an ad interim injunction.
'We are of the view that there is no status quo to maintain as the fifth supplementary agreement has lapsed on March 31, this year,' he said.
Justice Sequerah ordered Hydroshoppe and Menara KL to pay legal costs totalling RM30,000 to the respondents.
The respondents were the Ministry of Communications, its minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil, the government, LSH Service Master Sdn Bhd, LSH Best Builders Sdn Bhd and Service Master (M) Sdn Bhd.
The appeal was against the decision of the High Court in April, this year which had similarly dismissed the application for the ad interim injunction.
Hydroshoppe and Menara KL had filed a breach of contract suit against the respondents, claiming that LSH and its units had induced a breach of contract that the companies (Hydroshoppe and Menara KL) had agreed to with the government in an August 2022 meeting.
They claimed that LSH Capital and its units had committed dishonest assistance, and want the award of the KL Tower concession to LSH Service Master to be declared void and unlawful.
They are also claiming an estimated RM1 billion in damages, and for the concession of the iconic Kuala Lumpur landmark building to be transferred back to them.
The High Court will hear the inter parte injunction on June 9.
It will also hear on June 5, an ex parte contempt application filed by the companies.
In the proceedings before the Court of Appeal yesterday, lawyer Vinayak Sri Ram represented Hydroshoppe and Menara Kuala Lumpur, Senior Federal Counsel Ahmad Hanir Hambaly@Arwi for the Ministry of Communications, Fahmi and the government.
Lawyer Datuk Malik Imtiaz Sarwar represented LSH Service Master, LSH Best Builders and Service Master. — Bernama

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