Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Jamil Khir Baharom in a parliamentary reply yesterday said a ban on unilateral conversions contravenes Article 12(4) of the Federal Constitution.
Jamil Khir said this is affirmed in the R Subashini vs T Saravanan case.
However, MCCBCHST chairperson Jagir Singh said this view is defective, given the facts of the Subashini case.
“The MCCBCHST reiterates that if a single parent is allowed to convert a child, then there will be no justice and finality in the matter and it will have the effect of ignoring the constitutional provisions.
“If a single-parent-can-convert-a-child approach is taken, then this matter will persist even for the next 100 years, with justice being denied to the non-converting spouse and the matter can never be put to rest,” Jagir said.
The case cited involves Hindu mother R Subashini’s challenge of her son’s conversion to Islam by her estranged husband after he embraced Islam.
Jamil Khir said the Federal Court case’s dismissal of Subashini’s application affirmed that the word ‘parent’ in Article 12(4) means a single parent can change the religion of the child.
Subashini had filed for divorce before three months had lapsed since her estranged husband T Saravanan’s conversion to Islam, but the law states it could only be filed three months after the conversions have lapsed.
Jagir also cited constitutional law professor Shad Saleem Faruqi, who had then observed that the Federal Court’s 2-1 judgment did not change the word ‘parent’ to mean singular instead of plural.
The highest law
In the dissenting view, Justice Abdul Aziz Mohamed also states that the wife has equal right in preferring that the child is not converted to Islam, Jagir said.
“In view of the above, it is wrong for anyone to quote the Subashini case as authority for allowing unilateral conversion by one parent.
“If Article 12(4) were to be so interpreted, then it (Federal Constitution) being the highest law, a single parent could one day convert a child to one religion and the next day the other parent can convert the same child to a different religion. This would be absurd,” he said.
Furthermore, he said, it would be equally absurd to later say that a child who has been converted to Islam by a single parent cannot convert to another religion due to syariah law.
“Religious law cannot override the constitution,” Jagir said.
On March 9, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nancy Shukri said the drafting of laws pertaining to the unilateral conversion of minors has been completed.
“From the aspect of civil (law), we do not have much problems, but this also relates to syariah (law),” Nancy said then.
From the syariah law aspect, she said, Jamil Khir has been obtaining feedback from the state religious bodies.
“A series of consultations with the states have been conducted,” Nancy said.
The cabinet had set up a five-member special committee in its latest attempt to deal with the interfaith conversion dispute and custody matters.
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