[Editor's note, 3.30pm: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Paramjeet Kaur was charged for assaulting a member of the public. This has been amended.]

A woman who was fined for breaching safe distancing rules at Shunfu Mart in April, and was subsequently caught in the act again on May 3 at the same location, appeared in court to face charges today (May 5).

The May 3 incident saw the woman assaulting a member of the public and led to her being arrested at 9:10pm the next day, May 4.

Charged in court

Paramjeet Kaur, a 40-year-old Singapore citizen, made her court appearance remotely, via video call, and had charges read to her.

She wore a mask throughout the proceedings, which was pulled down while she was speaking.

Her lawyer, Satwant Singh, said that Kaur's mother had asked him to represent her, and told the court that she would like to "say something to the court with regards to [her] representation".

With the consent of District Judge Clement Julien Tan, Kaur said:

"I would just like to say something. I’m here as a living woman and that is my only capacity in this matter. I extend my sovereign immunity to Satwant and ask for Satwant to represent me."

The prosecution requested for Kaur to be remanded at the Institute of Mental Health, for psychiatric evaluation.

In response to this, Kaur said, "No, no".

Meanwhile, Singh asked for time to speak with his client face to face, saying that "she has her own rights" and that to be fair to Kaur, she should be allowed to have him explain the law to her.

However, the judge did not make a decision on this and instead ordered that the case be stood down while the relevant reports were circulated.

Penalties for not wearing a mask

Wearing of masks outside of homes has been made compulsory since Apr. 14.

First time offenders will face a S$300 fine, while subsequent offences will be subject to a S$1,000 fine and possible prosecution.

The woman was likely fined S$300 for her first offence in April, and could face a S$1,000 fine and possible prosecution for not wearing a mask on May 3.

Case background

The woman's rather esoteric remarks, including calling herself "a sovereign" and saying "I am not a person", drove Singaporeans into a Google search frenzy.

The word "sovereign" was the most searched word in the country on Sunday, May 3.

The case also attracted comments from Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam.

The woman had been "caught and fined" for the incident in April, according to a May 3 Facebook post by Chong Kee Hiong, a Member of the Parliament from the Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, who thanked police officers for "swiftly apprehending the offender on the spot" that day.

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Top image via SG Covidiots and Void Deck Kakis on Facebook