AN interfaith group and a lawyer have urged an Islamic pressure group to stay out of the Federal Court ruling on the unilateral conversion of M. Indira Gandhi’s three children.

The Malaysian Consultative Council on Buddhism, Christianity, Sikhism and Taoism president R.S. Mohan Shan said it is not right for the Malaysian Association of Muslim Scholars (PUM) to urge police to stop looking for Indira’s ex-husband.

“The Federal Court is the highest authority in the country and they have already made their judgment. So their judgment is not questionable.

“How can they (PUM) make a statement which is akin to going against the law and the judiciary?” Mohan told The Malaysian Insight.

He was commenting on PUM’s statement that warned religious violence may erupt if police continue hunting down Indira’s ex-husband Muhammad Riduan Abdullah and nine-year-old daughter Prasana Diksa.

The statement was posted on Facebook after the Federal Court ruled the unilateral conversion of the couple’s three children to Islam as null and void.

Mohan, who is also the Hindu Sangam president, said as a religious body, PUM should not threaten the police and non-Muslim community.

“We don’t want riots and such in the country. We want Riduan brought to justice and the child returned to the mother.”

Indira’s lawyer M. Kulasegaran said the authorities should carry out their duties as ordered by the court and uphold the constitution.

“If the other party is not happy then it’s going to be endless. Is nine years (fighting the case) not long enough?

“This a court order and we are not looking if they are Hindus, Christians or Taoists,” he said.

Kulasegaran added that individuals or groups alleging that the Federal Court’s decision would invite violence must pause to consider whether they are doing their part to uphold the constitution.

He said that several years ago, when the apex court ruled against Lina Joy in the matter of her renunciation of Islam, former Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi publicly urged all citizens to respect the law.

“In other words, he urged citizens to accept the court’s decision, thereby adhering to the constitution.

“We either abide by it, which means we uphold the rule of law, or become members of factions prone to periodic distemper,” Kula said.

Earlier this week, a five-man Federal Court bench made an unanimous decision that the conversion of Indira’s three children by Riduan, who had converted to Islam, was null and void.

The court also ruled conversions of minors will need the consent of both parents to be deemed legal.

Indira turned to the courts after Riduan took Prasana after unilaterally converting their three children to Islam in 2009.

Prasana was only 11-months-old then. Indira has another daughter aged, 21, and a 20-year-old son who are staying with her. – February 2, 2018.