KUALA LUMPUR: A father was fined RM4,000 by the Sessions Court after he pleaded guilty to hitting his daughter's left leg with a mobile phone and using a broom to hit her head.

       The father also twisted his daughter's arm until it became bruised.

       Judge Mahyon Talib fined the 39-year-old for the offence committed on his daughter, who was aged 10 years and 11 months at the time, at a house in Setapak at noon on Nov 8.

       The court also sentenced the father of nine to two months’ jail if he failed to pay the fine.

       When asked by the judge why the accused had acted in such a way, he said his daughter refused to study and was constantly playing with her mobile phone.

       Mahyon then advised the accused not to repeat his actions as this was a serious offence.

       The accused was charged under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, which carries a fine not exceeding RM50,000, or a jail term of up to 20 years, or both.

       Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Abdul Khaliq Nazeri asked for a prison sentence on the accused saying that as a father, he should protect and not hurt his child.

       The accused, who was not represented, appealed for a fine on grounds that he had repented and promised not to repeat the offence.

       "My wife left me, so my parents and I are looking after the kids now,” he said on Wednesday (Nov 17). - Bernama