Former Johor Sultanah loses battle to nullify divorce
The Malaysian Insider – 5 hours agoRELATED CONTENT
- Former Johor Sultanah loses battle to nullify divorce
The former Sultanah of Johor has lost her final battle in the Shariah Court of Appeal to set aside the validity of her divorce from the late Sultan of Johor.
A three-man bench led by judge Syed Ali Syed Abu Bakar said the Shariah High Court judge was correct in declaring that he was bound by a fatwa issued by a committee.
The other judges are Marsid @ Morsid Mahrof and Jainuddin Mt Sum.
Tuanku Zanarah's (pic) predicament started in August last year when she received a letter saying the late ruler had divorced her in January 2009.
In 1961, she married Sultan Mahmud Iskandar Ismail, who died on January 22, 2010.
A letter from the Johor Mufti Mohd Tahrir Syamsuddin to her was accompanied by three other documents, including a divorce certificate dated October 8, 2010, that stated the divorce took place on January 23, 2009.
She also received a second letter from the former Johor menteri besar Tan Sri Abdul Ghani Othman dated December 9, 2010, informing her of the Johor fatwa committee’s decision on August 6, 2010 that recognised the validity of the divorce.
The final document was from the Lower Shariah Court dated September 30, 2010 that affirmed the divorce.
On January 1, Tuanku Zanariah filed a review application to set aside the Lower Shariah Court order which stated that her late husband had divorced her.
She wanted the order declared null and void because she was not called for any divorce proceedings.
She also sought the court's assistance to investigate whether Sultan Iskandar's proclamation in January 2009 that was allegedly witnessed by Ghani and the Johor royal committee chairman Tengku Osman Tunku Temenggong Ahmad, was valid based on a statutory declaration they made.
She had also wanted the ruju’ (resumption of conjugal relationship) pronounced a week after the purported divorce to be declared invalid.
In her affidavit, Tuanku Zanariah alleged that the state administration, especially the religious authorities, was used in an attempt to defame her and the late Sultan.
She said the late ruler did not make any application to verify the alleged divorce, adding that they lived together as lawful husband and wife in peace and harmony until he died.
However, the Shariah High Court dismissed the application on January 20 as judge Muhammad Khaldun Mohd Sharif said he was bound by a fatwa on the matter.
In March, the Johor Islamic Council was made a party to the suit.
Lawyer Affshah Arifin, who appeared for Tunku Zanariah, told The Malaysian Insider that she is waiting for further instructions from her client on their next move.
She said the legal team was also considering moving to the civil court to exert the rights of the sultanah.
"She has only lost the legal battle in Johor but the war is far from over," Affshah said.
Among the options being explored is to apply for a judicial review of the Shariah Court decision in a civil high court. – June 9, 2014.
