THE Kuala Lumpur High Court has quashed the conversion of two children of a Buddhist man to Islam, which the father said was done without his consent and under allegedly dubious circumstances.

The court has not released the identities of the 46-year-old man, his 42-year-old former wife or their two children.

Justice Azizah Nawawi cited in her decision the apex court’s landmark ruling in the Indira Gandhi conversion case, in which the Federal Court ruled against the unilateral conversion of children.

Azizah also dismissed a stay application pending an appeal.

No costs were awarded.

The father did not speak to reporters after the court handed down its decision. 

The Federal Territories Registrar of Muslim Converts, represented by Zulkifli Cheyong and the mother, represented by Rohani Ibrahim, will appeal the case.

The mother will also appeal her loss of custody rights to the Federal Court, Rohani said. 

Last month, the Court of Appeal had granted custody of the children, aged 10 and 5, to the father. 

The children, who live in Selangor, were converted to Islam in 2016 in Kuala Lumpur.

The court today nullified and voided the certificates of conversion for the two children, who were born when the woman was still Buddhist.
 
The suit was filed in June 2016 against the the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) director-general, Jawi registrar of mualaf, the Education Ministry director-general, the government and the mother.
 
Only the registrar and the mother have indicated they would appeal the case. 

Earlier this year in a landmark ruling on January 29, the Federal Court allowed the appeal to reverse the conversion of three children of kindergarten teacher M. Indira Gandhi, who were converted to Islam by her ex-husband.

A five-member Federal Court panel had unanimously decided that consent of both parents was required before a certificate of conversion to Islam could be issued by the Registrar of Muallafs.  

The court decision also affirmed the position that civil courts had exclusive and inherent jurisdiction to review the actions of a public authority, such as the Registrar of Muallafs. 

The decision also affirmed the principle of separation of powers and the rule of law, lawyers had said. – October 16, 2018.