A year on from historic court win, Indira struggling to survive
She says she is now bankrupt due to a loan taken by her ex-husband, and left with no news on her daughter.
Her legal battles may be over, but M Indira Gandhi's struggle continues a year after winning her landmark case against her estranged ex-husband Muhammad Riduan Abdullah for custody of her three children.
In an interview with Free Malaysia Today, Indira revealed how she is being left with little money and no news about Riduan.
"Maybe he has another family now, but what about me and my family? We are being left hanging," she said, adding that she had not received alimony or any form of child support from her fugitive ex-husband.
More than that, Indira said she is now jobless and a bankrupt because of her failure to settle a car loan taken by Riduan using her name when they were still married.
Indira's long-running court battle had made headlines, she told FMT, which made employers wary.
Despite her present difficulties, however, Indira said she has not lost hope of being reunited with her daughter Prasana Diksa, who was abducted by Riduan.
"It’s definitely going to be a shock.
"I don’t know how she looks. I don’t even know if she is going to school," she was quoted as saying.
'Convert for assistance'
According to FMT, Indira recalled how her 13-year marriage had taken a toll due to financial pressures, which she attributed to her ex-husband's inability to hold down a job.
Indira further claimed that Riduan once suggested leaving Hinduism for another religion to qualify for certain privileges and assistance.
“At first, he chose Christianity, but when he figured that converting to Christianity wasn’t going to bring us anything, he suggested we convert to Islam so he could get privileges to help ease our financial problems."
Riduan, then known as K Pathmanaban, eventually converted to Islam in March 2009, and subsequently arranged for the unilateral conversion of all three children.
After fleeing with their youngest daughter, he was initially granted custody of the child by the Syariah Court, but the High Court later granted custody to Indira.
The civil court also issued an arrest warrant against Riduan in 2014, but his and Prasana's whereabouts remain unknown.
The Federal Court nullified the conversion of all three of Indira's children to Islam in January last year, ruling that permission is needed from both parents before changing the faith of the child.
Earlier this month, inspector-general of police Mohamad Fuzi Harun said authorities have been unsuccessful in tracing the whereabouts of Riduan and Prasana.
Trust donation I am lawyer in charge of Indira Gandhi Trust . Check my firm www.mkp.com.myUnited Oversea Bank Acct 1063055307Account name Indira Gandhi Trust please advised upon deposit or Transfer your name as donor to philip.koh@mkp.com.my and tarenjitkaur@mkp.com.my( my secretary )the trust fund have a little over RM 15k presently and some funds has been disbursed to assist Indira's children in their college fees and costs. We are also in process of procuring Indira to be release from bankruptcy . This was set up ( 4 Feb 2016 ) soon after the case to assist Indira and her family . Trustees are Datuk Mahadev Shankar( retired Court of Appeal judge ) ;Datuk Mohan Shanmugam ( President , Hindu Sangam ) ; Radha Krishnan a/s Rao( Consultant, Messrs Shearn Delamore
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