High Court dismisses Semantan Estate bid to postpone Duta Enclave compensation hearing

KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — The High Court today dismissed an application by Semantan Estate (1952) Sdn Bhd to stay proceedings to determine the amount of damages to be paid by the government regarding the value of the land known as Duta Enclave.

Judge Roslan Mat Nor, who made the ruling, said the case should have been in the final stages for the assessment of damages ordered by the Court of Appeal.

“The court also needs to consider the submissions made by the defendant (government) that if the stay of proceedings is allowed, it will cause prejudice to the defendant because the Court of Appeal has ordered that interest be paid at the rate of six per cent from 1956 until the date the compensation is paid.

“Therefore, after considering the brief reasons, the court is of the opinion that the application to stay the proceedings is dismissed without any costs,” said the judge and set a hearing on damages on August 14 and 21 and September 1.

On May 18, Semantan Estate filed an application to stay the proceedings until the appeal to obtain several documents including land acquisition plans between 1956 and 1960 to be used in determining the amount of damages to be paid by the government in relation to the ownership of the Duta Enclave land is decided by the Court of Appeal.

In addition, Roslan said that although the court’s jurisdiction is to determine whether the stay application is allowed or not, it cannot override justice to parties.

“This court is of the opinion that it is not appropriate to consider who the parties are in this case, what is important for the court is to decide based on the legal principles that have been stated regarding the adjournment of proceedings,” he said.

The proceedings were attended by senior federal counsel Nurhafizza Azizan representing the government as the defendant while lawyer Ira Biswas acted on behalf of Semantan Estate.

On November 13 2025, the Federal Court dismissed Semantan Estate’s application for leave to appeal against the Court of Appeal’s decision that the Federal Territory Land Titles Registrar did not need to register 263.272 acres of land in Duta Enclave in the name of the company.

Thus, the Court of Appeal’s decision in favour of the government remains in force because the company cannot continue its appeal to the Federal Court after failing to obtain leave. The case was then returned to the High Court for a hearing for the assessment of damages.

On June 24 2025, the Court The appeal ruled that Semantan Estate was not entitled to the title to the land but that the company was entitled to appropriate compensation which would be assessed based on the value of the land in 1956, when it was acquired by the government.

The disputed land is located in the prime area of Jalan Duta, known as the Duta Enclave, which houses government buildings including the National Hockey Stadium, the Malaysian Integrity Institute, the National Archives, the Kuala Lumpur Syariah Court, the Inland Revenue Board and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Academy.

The dispute involving Semantan Estate began in 2003 when the company sued the government, claiming that the land was acquired illegally.

In 2009, Judicial Commissioner Zura Yahya ruled in favour of Semantan Estate and ruled that the government had acquired the land illegally and that the company had a beneficial interest in it.

The government then appealed the decision to the Court of Appeal and the Federal Court but was unsuccessful.

In February 2017, Semantan Estate filed a suit against the Registrar of Land Titles of the Federal Territory to enforce the High Court’s 2009 judgment.

The High Court in August 2024 ordered the Federal Territory Land Titles Registrar to transfer ownership of the land concerned within three months from the date of the judgment, but the decision was set aside by the Court of Appeal. — Bernama