Two sisters are Hindu, weren't born Muslim, court rules
Judicial commissioner Choong Yeow Choy on Monday (Jan 8) allowed an originating summons by T Nivethah, 20, and T Swetha, 19, for a declaration that their religion was always Hinduism.
When contacted by Malaysiakini recently...
The Shah Alam High Court ruled that two sisters have never been Muslims, contrary to the claims by the National Registration Department (NRD) and Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais) that the duo were born into the faith.
Judicial commissioner Choong Yeow Choy on Monday (Jan 8) allowed an originating summons by T Nivethah, 20, and T Swetha, 19, for a declaration that their religion was always Hinduism.
When contacted by Malaysiakini recently, the sisters’ counsel Gurdial Singh Nijar confirmed the successful legal action.
The NRD director-general and Mais - who were the defendants - contended that the sisters were born Muslim in 2003 and 2004 respectively, and that the duo were trying to renounce Islam, which would have precluded the Shah Alam civil court from hearing the originating summons.
The defendants were relying on the contention that Selangor’s syariah laws state that the sisters - who were born out of wedlock to a Hindu father and an allegedly Muslim mother - were born Muslims by virtue of their mother’s faith.
According to a copy of the judgment, the High Court disagreed with the defendants’ arguments, pointing out that the mother was never Muslim from the onset.
The judicial commissioner said this is because the mother was born out of wedlock to a Muslim grandmother and a non-Muslim grandfather.
The judicial commissioner pointed out that this precluded the application of the Administration of the Religion of Islam (State of Selangor) Enactment 2003 and the Islamic Family Law (State of Selangor) Enactment 2003 in relation to the sisters’ faith.
Choong added that the sisters’ situation and resolution are covered by the landmark 2021 apex court ruling involving Rosliza Ibrahim, who was declared to have never been Muslim as she was born out of wedlock to a Muslim and non-Muslim parent.
The judicial commissioner also ordered the defendants to pay RM10,000 in costs to the sisters.
When contacted by Malaysiakini, NRD’s legal representative from the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) said they have no instructions yet on whether to appeal to the Court of Appeal.
Law firm Messrs Kamaruzaman Arif & Sofiah is acting for Mais.
