Single mother Loh Siew Hong will know on May 11 whether she succeeds in her civil court action to quash her three children’s unilateral conversion to Islam.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court (Appellate and Special Powers) set the verdict date after having heard oral submissions from legal teams this morning.
Judge Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh heard arguments on the merits of the judicial review by Loh’s (above) counsel A Srimurugan as well as from lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla and Perlis state legal adviser Mohd Radhi Abas.
Haniff is acting for the Religious and Malay Customs Council of Perlis (Maips), while Radhi appeared for Perlis Registrar of Mualafs (new converts to Islam), state mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin, and the state government.
Maips, Asri and the state’s mualaf registrar and government are the respondents targeted by the judicial review.
On Aug 1 last year, the civil court granted leave to Loh to commence with her judicial review. Today was the hearing of the merits of the legal action.
During online proceedings before Wan Ahmad Farid today, Srimurugan submitted that the landmark 2018 apex court decision involving kindergarten teacher M Indira Gandhi states outlaws unilateral conversions as the consent of both parents is required before a child can be converted to Islam.
The lawyer also said that a statement by Attorney-General Idrus Harun during the Opening of Legal Year 2023 (OLY) earlier this year "destroys" the contention by the respondents that the Bahasa Malaysia version of the Federal Constitution is the authoritative version over the English version.
Srimurugan contended that Idrus' statement showed that there was no successful attempt to make the BM version of the Federal Constitution the authoritative text over the English version.
On Jan 9 during OLY at Putrajaya, Idrus made a speech where he said the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) is proposing to the federal government for the BM version of the Federal Constitution to be made the authoritative version.
In the 2018 ruling, the Federal Court sided with Indira in agreeing that the English version of Article 12(4) of the Federal Constitution prevails over the Bahasa Malaysia edition, thus making it unlawful for her former husband to convert her three children to Islam without her consent as well.
The English version of Article 12(4) uses the term “parent or guardian”, while the Bahasa Malaysia translation of the provision reads as “ibu atau bapa” (mother or father).
Haniff’s rebuttal
However, in rebuttal, Haniff submitted that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's attendance during a launch ceremony of the BM version of the Federal Constitution in 2003 amounted to making it the authoritative version over the English text.
The lawyer contended that the Agong could confer the authoritativeness on the BM version of the Federal Constitution without needing actual gazetting.
Haniff claimed that the apex court in Indira's appeal in 2018 failed to consider this issue and that it is now for the present High Court to decide whether the BM version is the authoritative text over the English version.
The lawyer cited a report by The Star article titled 'Malay Version of Federal Constitution launched' dated Sept 30, 2003.
It was reported that Loh obtained full custody of the children through the civil family court in December 2021. Her divorce proceeding was between herself and Muslim convert Muhammad Nagahswaran Muniandy.
On Feb 21 last year, another bench of the High Court in Kuala Lumpur granted Loh’s habeas corpus application to be reunited with her three children.
The following month, the 35-year-old mother went to the civil court to challenge the validity of her children’s conversion.
Through the judicial review, she was seeking an order of certiorari to overturn the Perlis Muallaf Registrar’s registration of her children’s conversion dated July 7, 2020.
Loh is seeking several declarations, among them that Nagahswaran was not legally fit to convert their children to Islam.
Another declaration sought is that a Perlis state enactment - which permits a single parent to convert a minor child to Islam without the permission of the other parent - is constitutionally invalid.
She seeks a declaration that her twin daughters, aged 14, and 11-year-old son are Hindus. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.