In yet another twist, the Selangor Islamic Affairs Council (Mais) application to withdraw its claim on the body of A Rayappan has been rejected by the Shah Alam Syariah High Court over a technicality.

But it made an about-turn a few hours later in the day by granting the council's request.

Hearing the application earlier today, judge Abu Zaky Mohammad said his earlier judgment remains and the case would proceed next Tuesday, reports Bernama.

However, Mais said the court had called up the case again in the afternoon and decided that the council was allowed to drop its claim.

On Dec 1, Abu Zaky had ruled that Rayappan was a Muslim and gave Mais the right to claim his remains for a Muslim burial.

The deceased's family insist that he died a Christian and they claimed the body at the Kuala Lumpur Hospital last night after Mais said it was withdrawing its case.

The court case on Dec 12 has, however, been rendered academic as the remains were cremated this morning.

According to Abu Zaky, Mais' application to withdraw its claim contradicted Section 95 of the Selangor Syariah Court Procedural Enactment 2003, which says that withdrawal applications must first be granted leave by the courts.

Yesterday, Mais counsel Juraish Kamarudin told the court that his party had made the application according to Section 65 (1) of the same enactment.

At a press conference later, Mais chairman Mohamed Adzib Mohd Isa said the withdrawal application was filed because of "overwhelming" evidence which proved that Rayappan was not a Muslim.

Before the matter was handed to Mais, the Federal Territories Islamic Affairs Department had tried to stop Rayappan's family from claiming the body on Nov 30.

Daughters called

Rayappan, 71, who died on Nov 29 after a long illness, was born a Roman Catholic, but converted to Islam in 1990 when he took a Muslim woman as his second wife. Under Malaysian law, non-Muslims must first convert to Islam before they can marry Muslims.

In 1996, Rayappan renounced Islam and went back to his wife Lourdes Mary, 69, and their six children, lawyers said. The confrontation was triggered when Islamic religious authorities last week tried to claim his body from Kuala Lumpur Hospital morgue to bury him as a Muslim.

Mais then referred the matter to the Shah Alam Syariah Court which ruled on Friday that Rayappan - or Muhammad Rayappan Abdullah - must be buried according to Islamic rites.

Mais, however, took it upon itself to file a review of its application three days later at the Syariah High Court so as to allow it to subpoena Rayappan's three daughters to testify that he was a Christian.

However, when Rayappan's daughters refused to appear before an Islamic court, the High Court on Wednesday referred the matter higher up - to the Syariah Court of Appeals.

But the Syariah Court of Appeals yesterday decided that the Syariah High Court could hear the review.

The family, in the meantime, filed a civil suit with the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Monday against the government and the hospital, seeking a declaration that Rayappan was a Christian and that his body should be released to the family.

Submission bid

Meanwhile, Abu Zaky had earlier today also rejected an application by Syariah Lawyers Association of Malaysia president Zainul Rijal Abu Bakar to make a submission.

Zainul was holding a watching brief for the association, which is opposed to Mais' decison to withdraw the case.

Zainul said his application was made because Mais' withdrawal was not in accordance to procedures and laws. He added that as a syariah lawyer, he was compelled to act in the interest of Islam.

While the tussle over Rayappan remains is now over, his family will be going to the civil court on Monday to file a legal suit for damages.