KINI ROUNDUP | Here are the key headlines you may have missed yesterday, in brief.

CJ's 'extension' prompts Bar EGM

Malaysian Bar president George Varghese announced an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) in response to the appointment of chief justice Md Raus Sharif and Court of Appeal president Zulkefli Ahmad Makinuddin as additional judges, which he described as "blatantly unconstitutional".

A former Court of Appeal judge joined former chief justice Abdul Hamid Mohamad in speaking out against the appointment, stressing that they were unconstitutional.

Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh, who is a lawyer, advised Md Raus Sharif and Zulkefli to reject the appointments to avoid a lengthy challenge and embarrassment to the judiciary.

Senior lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah gave a different opinion, stating that nothing in the federal constitution prohibited an additional judge from being the chief justice or Court of Appeal president.

DAP accuses ROS of electoral sabotage

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng accused the Registrar of Societies (ROS) of trying to cripple the DAP's general election preparation by ordering a party re-election after four years, insisting that the question of re-election does not arise.

PKR communications chief Fahmi Fadzil said ROS' decision shortly after the prime minister's press secretary Tengku Sariffuddin Tengku Ahmad raised the status of DAP's registration suggested political interference.

Cheras Umno chief Syed Ali Alhabshee insisted that Umno had no role in ROS' decision, stressing that ROS is independent and had even deregistered Umno in 1987.

Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi advised the ROS to handle the matter professionally.

The plight of undocumented migrants

Several NGOs questioned the government's move to punish undocumented migrants for their employers' refusal to register them.

Malaysiakini, in a special report, also highlighted how migrant workers were being subjected to pay thousands to ringgit in order to be registered.

Environmental activists raised concerns that loggers have resorted to logging in the vicinity of Pos Balar in Gua Musang after a court order prevented them from entering the area.

Other Kini bites

PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man announced a 1MDB roundtable discussion and hoped to invite DAP' Kepong MP Tan Seng Giaw despite PAS having severed ties with the DAP.

Cheras Umno chief Syed Ali Alhabshee said Sarawak Report should lodge a report over claims that the prime minister paid RM7 million to the military intelligence chief instead of hurling accusations.

Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to "watch his mouth" and focus instead on reciting religious verses.

Looking ahead

Umno vice-presidents Hishammuddin Hussein and Ahmad Zahid Hamidi will be officiating the delegates meetings of Umno divisions in Cheras and Gombak respectively.