Umno man, duo fail to delay RM492,480 refund to umrah pilgrims

PETALING JAYA: The Kuala Lumpur High Court has dismissed an application by three directors and shareholders of a now-defunct travel company, including an Umno division leader, to postpone repaying some RM492,480 to umrah pilgrims.

Justice Leong Wai Hong dismissed the application by the trio from Rehla Travel Services Sdn Bhd for a stay of execution of the payment order pending the outcome of their appeal against a lower court’s ruling that they had committed fraud.

“The grounds of appeal filed do not constitute special circumstances that justify granting a stay. The application is dismissed with costs of RM5,000,” Leong was quoted as saying by Bernama.

Lawyer Shahril Madisa represented the trio – Kangar Umno chief Fathul Bari Mat Jaya, Sekh Fazzli Sekh Ruzi and Wan Azizul Wan Yusoff – while lawyer Teoh Bi Shan appeared for KRS Travel Sdn Bhd, which managed the pilgrims’ journey to Mecca.

In December 2025, the High Court upheld the sessions court’s ruling that the trio committed fraud by failing to return the funds that should have been refunded to the pilgrims after their trips were cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Following a full trial, the sessions court found that there was fraud on the part of the defendants and allowed KRS’s claim amounting to RM492,480.

According to the facts of the case, Rehla operated as a travel and tour agency company that provided reservation services and related activities. It had also been a ticketing agent for Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAB) since 2019.

In February 2020, KRS sought Rehla’s services to source for and purchase flight tickets to Medina and Jeddah for its clients to perform their pilgrimage to Mecca.

KRS paid RM492,480 to Rehla for this purpose. As the MAB ticket agent, Rehla then paid the airline to purchase the flight tickets.

Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the tickets bought by KRS were cancelled by MAB. Rehla also ceased operating during that period.

The airline then paid a settlement sum of about RM1.3 million to Rehla, which included the RM492,480 paid by KRS.

KRS contended that RM492,480 from the sum paid to Rehla should have been refunded to its customers, the pilgrims.