Court allows Islamic councils to intervene in bid against unilateral conversion
Published on: Monday, October 23, 2023
By: FMT
Indira Gandhi, whose three children were unilaterally converted by her ex-husband, is seeking to nullify laws permitting unilateral conversions in eight states in Malaysia.
Kuala Lumpur: The High Court has allowed the federal and Johor state religious councils to intervene in a lawsuit brought by Indira Gandhi and 13 others challenging the validity of state laws that allow the unilateral conversions of minors to the Islamic faith.
The Federal Territories Islamic Religious Council (MAIWP) and Johor Islamic Religious Council (MAIJ) had their intervener applications approved, but a similar application by the Federal Territories shariah bar was dismissed.
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Justice Ahmad Kamal Shahid also made no order as to costs and set Nov 20 for case management.
Indira, whose three underage children were converted to Islam by her ex-husband without her consent, is seeking to nullify laws permitting unilateral conversions in eight states.
The originating summons, filed on March 3, is premised on a 2018 Federal Court ruling in Indira’s own case, which held that unilateral conversions violated the Federal Constitution.
In the landmark decision, the apex court nullified the conversion of Indira’s three children by her former husband.
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The court interpreted the word “parent” in Article 12(4) to mean both parents of a child, provided they were still alive. This means any conversion would require the consent of both living parents.
State laws in the Federal Territories, Perlis, Kedah, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak and Johor currently allow for unilateral conversions.
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Indira’s ex-husband, Riduan Abdullah, remains a fugitive, and still has their daughter Prasana Diksa under his control.
Riduan, formerly known as K Pathmanathan, had fled with the then 11-month old Prasana in 2019, shortly after he embraced Islam.
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