THE Court of Appeal has granted Perlis Islamic Religious and Malay Customs Council (Maips) the right to intervene in the terms of a custody agreement for a divorce case in which the three children were unilaterally converted to Islam by the father.

Single mother Loh Siew Hong had obtained custody of her children through the High Court, which ruled that Maips had no right to intervene in the case.

Loh’s ex-husband M. Nagahswaran had taken the children to Perlis, where he had them unilaterally converted to Islam.

However, today, Justice Has Zanah Mehat – leading a three-member bench alongside Justices See Mee Chun and Nazlan Ghazali – said Maips had made out a case under order 15, rule 6(2) of the Rules of Court 2012, read with section 96 of the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976.

“A reading of these two provisions would confer upon the applicant (Maips) a legal right to intervene. 

“We will therefore allow the appeal and set aside the order of the High Court. We make no order as to costs,” Has Zanah said when delivering the verdict.

Has Zanah said the questions about the religion of the children were not the focal point of discussion, which she said were the subject matter of a separate judicial review scheduled to be heard next month.

Acting for Maips, lawyer Haniff Khatri Abdullah was reported as saying that his client intends to file an application in the Family Court in Kuala Lumpur to vary a custody order given to Loh in March 2021.

“We will present our case before the court as to why the order should be varied,” he was quoted as saying by portal Free Malaysia Today.

Last year, the High Court dismissed Maips filing, saying that the council had failed to show the court that it was “required” in the children’s lives.

“The children are not orphans. They do not belong to the community of the state (Perlis) and they are now living in Selangor.

“Their connection to Perlis is fleeting,” Justice Evrol Mariette Peters had said in her ruling.

Earlier today, Haniff submitted to the Court of Appeal that Maips was an interested party because the children are Muslims under a Perlis enactment.

“The children need religious guidance because they are Muslims,” he said.

Haniff said Maips would also be able to provide zakat to Loh to assist in the children’s upbringing.

However, Loh’s lawyer, A. Srimurugan submitted that Maips could not be made party in marriage and divorce proceedings of non-Muslims.

“Only Loh’s ex-husband (Nagahswaran) can intervene to vary the custody order,” he added.

It is understood that Loh obtained interim custody of the children in 2019, pending completion of the divorce.

However, Nagahswaran then took the children to Perlis, where he unilaterally converted them to Islam on July 7, 2020.

The 15-year-old twin girls and an 11-year-old son were placed in the care of preacher Nazirah Nanthakumari Abdullah.

On March 31, 2021, the High Court granted Loh full custody of the children.

Loh’s divorce from Nagahswaran was finalised on September 23, 2021, and she filed for habeas corpus in the High Court, demanding Maips hand over her children.

Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah ruled in favour of Loh in February 2022, instructing Maips to facilitate the reunion with immediate effect.

In March 2022, Loh filed a judicial review application to challenge the children’s unilateral conversion.

Meanwhile, Maips filed a challenge to the custody order. – February 7, 2023.