The Court of Appeal has made a significant ruling on a case involving the conversion of three children to Islam without the consent of their mother.
The court unanimously declared the conversion null and void, stating that the High Court judge had made errors in not considering crucial issues raised by the children's mother, Loh Siew Hong.
Loh had initiated a judicial review to challenge the conversion of her children, who were aged 11 (twin daughters) and nine (a son) at the time. The three-judge panel, led by Justice Hadhariah Syed Ismail, pointed out that the High Court judge had failed to address two important matters raised by Loh during the judicial review.
The court emphasized that the issue of unilateral conversion was previously settled in the Indira Gandhi case, which ruled that both parents must give their consent before minor children can be converted to another religion. Justice Hadhariah affirmed this principle and stated, "The failure to answer these two issues is a clear misdirection that is tantamount to an error in law."
Consequently, the Court of Appeal allowed Loh's appeal and set aside the High Court's decision. The three judges on the bench, namely Justice Hashim Hamzah and Justice Azhahari Kamal Ramli, supported this landmark ruling. As a result of the Court of Appeal's decision, the children, who are now 16 and 13 years old, are considered Hindus.
Prior to this verdict, on May 11 of the previous year, High Court judge Justice Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh had dismissed Loh's judicial review application, deeming the children as Muslims due to the conversion. In his ruling, Justice Wan Ahmad Farid mentioned that the evidence in the case suggested that the children continued to identify as Muslims even after their mother assumed custody.
He also noted that there was no dispute regarding the certificates of conversion that had been issued for the children. The background of the case reveals that Loh's former husband, M.
Nagahswaran, had converted to Islam and unilaterally converted the children in July 2020 following the separation from Loh in March 2019. The Court of Appeal's decision carries significant implications for cases involving religious conversion of minors. It reinforces the requirement for the consent of both parents when a child's religion is being changed.
By nullifying the unilateral conversion in this case, the court has provided clarity and upheld the rights of the non-converting parent in matters of religion and custody. This ruling signifies a critical step in protecting the rights of individuals involved in cases of unilateral religious conversion and lays the groundwork for future legal decisions in similar cases.
The Court of Appeal's careful consideration of the issues raised by Loh Siew Hong demonstrates a commitment to upholding the principles of justice and fairness when it comes to matters concerning the religious affiliation of minors.
Source: Link
felixwrite is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact Newswav.