KUALA LUMPUR – Petaling Jaya MP Maria Chin Abdullah can proceed with her legal challenge against contempt procedures brought against her by the shariah court for allegedly insulting the Islamic judicial system, the high court here ruled today.
Free Malaysia Today reports that judge Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh who granted Maria leave to do so in online proceedings today said the PKR lawmaker had adduced enough material to argue that the contempt proceedings “could be tainted with procedural impropriety”.
Wan Ahmad Faris also ordered that the contempt proceedings against her in the shariah court be put on hold first until her legal challenge is disposed of.
Maria is seeking a judicial review to quash a shariah court order on October 14, 2019 that allowed businessman SM Faisal SM Nasimuddin to initiate contempt proceedings against her.
This was after she issued a press statement criticising the shariah court’s decision to sentence Faisal’s ex-wife, Emilia Hanafi, to seven days in prison for rescheduling his visitation dates for their children.
Maria said that Muslim women were still being discriminated against under Malaysia’s shariah legal system.
She is represented by lawyers Rosli Dahlan, Nurul Hafidzah Hassan and Zeti Zulfah Hassan @ Zulkifli, while senior federal counsel Ahmad Hanir Hambaly @ Arwi and Liyana Fuad appeared for the government. – The Vibes, August 22, 2022
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