The project manager accused of taking part in the Little India riot on Dec 8 will still have to report to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority daily, the court heard on Monday.
Arun Kaliamurthy, 28, who was in Singapore as a tourist on a social visit pass when the riot occurred, had last week asked the court through his lawyer Mr M. Ravi to change ICA's "unilateral decision" to impose a daily reporting criteria to a weekly one, in line with court-ordered bail conditions.
But Deputy Public Prosecutor John Lu told the court on Monday that as Controller of Immigration, "ICA has the power to impose whatever conditions they want when they issue an 'S' Pass". "That's an executive decision, and unfortunately this court has no power to review that decision," said DPP Lu.
In reply, Mr Ravi said that his client was being "unequally treated", given that the other accused rioters continued to enjoy the benefits of their work permits, and only Arun had his social visit pass cancelled. He indicated that he would be filing a judicial review on the matter. Speaking to The Straits Times after proceedings, Arun said it was "extremely oppressive and unreasonable" to be required to report to the ICA daily.
