Thursday, August 11, 2022

AGC opposes Emilia’s bid to challenge shariah court’s proceedings




AGC opposes Emilia’s bid to challenge shariah court’s proceedings


Emilia Hanafi’s application to suspend the ongoing committal proceedings in the shariah high court was rejected. (Bernama pic)


KUALA LUMPUR: The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) today objected to the leave application for judicial review sought by the former wife of a businessman regarding the jurisdiction of the Kuala Lumpur shariah court to initiate committal proceedings against her.

The committal proceedings against Emilia Hanafi, 43, are related to the violation of the court order granting SM Faisal SM Nasimuddin’s visitation rights.


Federal counsel Sallehuddin Md Ali, representing the AGC, said the objection was made on the grounds that the committal proceedings were under the jurisdiction of the shariah court and were not subject to judicial review, based on Article 121 (1A) of the Federal Constitution.

Emilia’s counsel Nizam Bashir Abdul Kariem Bashir argued that Article 126 of the Federal Constitution indicated that the power to initiate committal proceedings lies within the jurisdiction of the Federal Court, Court of Appeal and the High Court.


Nizam said the Kuala Lumpur shariah court could not hear the committal proceedings against his client because she is no longer a resident of the Federal Territory and now lives in Kajang, Selangor.

Meanwhile, counsel Akberdin Abdul Kader, representing SM Faisal and his mother, Zaleha Ismail who was also named as a respondent, said when the committal proceedings started, SM Faisal and Emilia still lived in Kuala Lumpur and the woman moved to Selangor only after the case started.

Judge Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid fixed Aug 30 for the decision on the application.

He also rejected Emilia’s application to suspend the ongoing committal proceedings in the shariah high court.


Other respondents are the Registrar of the Kuala Lumpur shariah high court, the Chief Registrar of the Federal Territories shariah court of appeal, the Kuala Lumpur shariah high court, the Kuala Lumpur shariah court of appeal and the government of Malaysia.

Based on the judicial review application, Emilia said she did not live or reside in the Federal Territory during the “hadhanah” (custody) proceedings filed at the Kuala Lumpur shariah high court on July 23, 2018. She was staying in Kajang, Selangor.

She said Section 4 of the Islamic Family Law (Federal Territories) 1984 applied to all Muslims living in the Federal Territories and those who were residents in the Federal Territories but living outside the Federal Territories.

Emilia sought a declaration that the Kuala Lumpur shariah high court and shariah court of appeal did not have jurisdiction to hear and punish any individual who contravenes the court, as it is the exclusive rights of the civil courts, according to Article 126 of the Federal Constitution.

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