Shanmugam, Tan See Leng Say Parts of Bloomberg Article Are False and Calculated to Disparage Them

Bloomberg, reporter deny words complained of are defamatory or capable of being so

- Samuel Devaraj

In statements of claim filed in the High Court, ministers K. Shanmugam and Tan See Leng said parts of an article Bloomberg published in 2024 were false, baseless and calculated to disparage and impugn them.

The ministers, who filed separate defamation suits against the media organisation and its journalist Low De Wei, set out their claims in documents that were each 49 pages long.

In their submissions, Bloomberg and Mr Low denied that the words complained of in the article, "Singapore mansion deals are increasingly shrouded in secrecy", are defamatory or capable of being defamatory of Mr Shanmugam and Dr Tan.

The article, published on Dec 12, 2024, is about good class bungalow (GCB) transactions in Singapore. It made reference to non-caveated purchases of such properties.

Property buyers lodge caveats, a legal document that is submitted to the Singapore Land Authority, to register interest in a property and prevent other people from purchasing it.

In the article, the writer noted Mr Shanmugam's use of a trust structure to sell a bungalow in the Queen Astrid Park area and Dr Tan's non-caveated purchase of a GCB in Brizay Park.

The ministers said the statements in the article are understood to falsely mean that they "had taken advantage of there being no checks and balances or disclosure requirements" in the selling and buying of their respective properties in "a non-transparent manner".