Police have right to take suspects to courts in lock-up uniforms, says IGP (Updated)

KUALA LUMPUR: Police have the authority to escort suspects to court in lock-up attire as it is within the law.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said this is the usual practice by police when suspects are in their custody.
"There is a reason why we ask them to wear those purple shirts. How do you differentiate suspects in crime cases from civilians in court?
"Sometimes we make two to three trips to court for remand or remand extension process. The lock-up uniform will ensure we conduct an efficient job," he told a media conference after launching a My Psychology Spiritual (MySP) training module for police at Bukit Aman today.
"We don't do things at our whims and fancy," Khalid added.
The MySP module aims to increase the integrity among the police through psychology and spiritual guidance.
Last week, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Datuk Dzulkifli Ahmad said handcuffs and lock-up attire are lawful and welcomed anyone to challenge the anti-graft body in court if the procedures were wrong.
Dzulkifli was responding to reporters who questioned him on claims by human rights lawyer N. Surendran that MACC's practice of making those arrested wear its orange lock-up uniform is unlawful.
He cited Article 5 of the Federal Constitution which provides for the fundamental liberties of a person and Regulation 168 of the Prisons Regulations 2000.
Regulations 168 states that a prisoner who has not been convicted shall be permitted to wear his own clothes and to procure for himself or to receive at proper hours such articles of clothing as the officer-in-charge may approve.
However, when contacted by theSun, deputy chief commissioner for operations Datuk Azam Baki said investigation officers are given discretionary powers on the issue of handcuffs and lock-up uniforms for suspects under arrest or investigation.
On a separate matter, Khalid said police will probe if sabotage was involved in the publication of the upside-down image of the Indonesian flag in a souvenir book for the ongoing SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur (KL2017).
"We received police reports and we will investigate any sabotage element involved in regards to the incident," he said.
The upside-down image of the Indonesia flag in the souvenir book became viral on social websites, besides drawing criticism from various quarters including the republic's Youth and Sports Minister Imam Nahrawi, who described the error as "very painful".
Khalid also said the recent large scale police raids launched by the Special Branch's counter terrorism unit (CTU) proved successful as police picked up wanted terrorists.
The anti-militancy operation was initiated ahead of the upcoming SEA Games to ensure its security and safety is at top mark.
Meanwhile, Khalid revealed the man who witnessed the fatal shooting of a Bukit Aman policeman in Kedah was under restricted residence in Changloon.
"The man was detained under the Prevention of Crime Act 1959. We are in the midst of conducting a thorough investigation into the murder of Sub Inspector Abu Hashim Ismail, 54, who was shot dead at a house in Taman Hosba, Changloon last Friday."
Besides the witness, two men who allegedly gunned down Abu Hashim were arrested after they surrendered to the police.
When asked if the two had underworld connections, Khalid said it was one of the subject of investigations.
"There are reasons the two suspects were on our wanted list," he said, declining to elaborate on the motive for the murder.
Abu Hashim was attached to Bukit Aman's Secret Societies, Gambling and Anti-Vice division (D7).