Court: Hindu mum ‘can question validity of children’s conversion’

PUTRAJAYA: The Federal Court has allowed Hindu mother M. Indira Gandhi to question if her children’s unilateral conversion to Islam is valid.

Panel chairman Chief Judge of Malaya Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin granted leave for appeal, allowing three questions to be posed by Indira Gandhi’s lawyers.

Her counsel K. Shanmuga had originally posed eight questions, while Senior Federal Counsel (SFC) Shamsul Bolhassan agreed with two of those questions.

The two questions were whether the Civil court has jurisdiction to review the Registrar of Muallafs’ actions; and whether a minor must recite the affirmation of faith in order to have their conversion registered.

The third question allowed was whether both parents of a child must consent before a certificate of conversion can be issued.

The three-man panel, which also included Justices Abu Samah Nordin and Aziah Ali, refunded the deposit though they did not set a date for the full hearing.

Indira Gandhi was supported by a team of lawyers which included Shanmuga, M. Kula Segaran, Aston Paiva and Fahri Azzat, while SFC Shamsul acted for the Federal Government and lawyer Hatim Musa acted for Indira’s ex-husband Muhammad Riduan Abdullah.

On Dec 30, 2015, the Court of Appeal reversed the quashing of Indira Gandhi’s children Prasana and Karan Dinesh’s conversion certificates but made no ruling as to Tevi Darshiny, as she was now above 18 years of age.

In a 2-1 majority decision, the panel ruled that the children’s conversion was under the jurisdiction of Syariah Court.

On July 25, 2013, the Ipoh High Court quashed the three children’s certificates of conversion, declaring it null and void.

The legal saga began in April 2009, when Riduan took their youngest child, Prasana, then 11 months old, and converted the three children to Islam.

The two older children – Tevi, then 12, and Karan, then 11 – remained with their mother.

On Oct 29 the same year, Riduan obtained a Syariah Court order that awarded him custody of the children.

In a custody battle that ensued, the Ipoh High Court granted Indira Gandhi full custody of all three children and on March 11, 2010, the father was ordered to return Prasana to Indira.

On April 29 this year, a different Federal Court panel affirmed that Riduan should be arrested for not returning Prasana, though the police were not obliged to recover the child.