PKR's top two leaders - Anwar Ibrahim and Azmin Ali - are expected to be charged tomorrow in relation to the Bersih 3.0 rally.
According to a notice that was served to the duo, they are accused of violating Section 188 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 109 and Section 34 of the same law.
Section 188 refers to "disobedience to an order duly promulgated by a public servant", while Section 109 and Section 34 refer to abetment.
The notice to Anwar and Azmin said they and five others who are still at large, had conspired with R Tangam, G Rajesh Kumar and Farhan Ibrahim @ Alias to breach a court order issued by Magistrate Zaki Asyraf Zubir on April 26.
Azmin is accused of abetting and inciting Tangam, Rajesh Kumar and Farhan to breach the barricade surrounding Dataran Merdeka.
The notice also stated that the breach could have caused a riot or clashes in the area.
A separate notice stated that the duo had participated in a street protest with the intention of protesting against Zaki Asyraf's court order.
The notice said that this constitutes an offence under Section 4(2)(c) of the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012, and is liable to a maximum fine of RM10,000 described in Section 4(3) of same law.
This will make the duo the first persons to be charged under the newly-passed Peaceful Assembly Act 2012.
According to Reuters , the charge will put further legal pressure on 64-year-old Anwar, who was acquitted of a second sodomy charge in January, could prove risky for BN by increasing sympathy votes for the de facto leader of the Pakatan Rakyat coalition.
Hand gestures
Another person who have received a similar notice is prominent Negri Sembilan PKR activist Badrul Hisham Shaharin. At the time of writing, the details of the notice have yet to be confirmed.
The charge is believed to be in relation to the infamous hand signal exchange between Anwar and Azmin seconds before the first breach of the barricades.
Badrul Hisham was behind Anwar at the time.
Various videos circulating on the Internet depicted Azmin gesturing and pointing over his back while Anwar was depicted gesturing to the former with both hands in a rolling motion.
Seconds later, while Azmin was trying to get down from an elevated platform after the exchange, a man standing behind him appeared to have lifted a metal barricade.
The man behind Azmin was later identified as Tangam, who has been charged on May 3 under Section 143 of the Penal Code for participating in an unlawful assembly, which was read together with an alternative charge of breaching a court order under Section 188 of the Penal Code.
Tangam was the first to be charged over the rally. Two others who have been charged for similar offences are lawyer Rajesh Kumar Gejinder Nath and Farhan , who is also a PKR Youth exco member.
Anwar and Azmin have denied claims that the exchange of hand gestures had anything to do with the breach.
Anwar claimed that his hand signals were instructions for Azmin to negotiate with the police, while the later claimed he gestured back to inform him that the negotiations were completed.
Attorney-General's Chambers prosecution head Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah confirmed that Anwar, Azmin and Badrul Hisham, popularly known as Chegubard, will be the only Bersih protestor to be charged tomorrow.
Additional reporting by Hafiz Yatim and Salhan K Ahmad