High Court Denies Single Hindu Mum's Appeal To Nullify Kids' Unilateral Islamic Conversion
The Kuala Lumpur High Court ruled today, 11 May, that the unilateral conversion of Loh Siew Hong's three children to Islam by her Muslim convert former husband is valid.
By Sadho Ram — 11 May 2023, 05:19 PM
The Kuala Lumpur High Court today, 11 May, dismissed single Hindu mother Loh Siew Hong's legal bid to nullify the unilateral conversion of her three children to Islam by her Muslim convert former husband
Judge Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh, while dismissing Loh's judicial review to challenge the unilateral conversion, said there was no evidence that the three children had stopped professing Islam.
According to the judge, the children were validly converted to Islam in accordance with Perlis Islamic state law, with the state Islamic authorities' affidavit confirming that the children recited the kalimah syahadah (Islamic recitation to convert to Islam) in 2020, reported Malaysiakini.
Farid pointed out that the children showed intent via their actions — one of them wants to be a syarie lawyer — to continue to be in Islam despite being under the custody of Loh since last year.
He said Loh's affidavit denying this assertion amounted to bare denial, and that the single mother did not deny the affirmative assertion that the children continued to profess Islam while under her custody.
"There is no evidence before me that the three children have reverted to the Hindu religion," he said, adding that Low also "did not deny the assertion (by her former husband) that the children continued professing the religion of Islam in performing daily subuh prayers when they were in her custody".
Loh's three children were converted to Islam by her former husband, Muhammad Nagahswaran Muniandy, without her consent in 2019
In March last year, the Penang-born Hindu Chinese woman sought a declaration that her three children are of the Hindu faith, and not Muslim, as they were legally incapable of embracing Islam without her consent.
She had gone to the High Court to also seek a declaration that her former husband was legally unfit to convert the kids to Islam, along with another declaration that a Perlis state enactment allowing a single parent to convert a minor child to Islam without the permission of the other parent is unconstitutional.
Loh wanted an order of certiorari to reverse the registration of conversion dated 7 July 2020 issued by the registrar and any official registration of her children's conversion to be struck from the records.
