IGP to appear in court for ignoring order to arrest Muslim convert, find child
The Malaysian Insider – 4 hours agoRELATED CONTENT
- IGP to appear in court for ignoring order to arrest Muslim convert, find child
The Ipoh High Court today ordered the Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid to explain why he refused to execute a May 30 order issued by the court to arrest Muslim convert Muhammad Ridzuan Abdullah and locate his youngest child.
Judge Lee Swee Seng, in granting Muhammad Ridzuan’s ex-wife M. Indira Gandhi’s mandamus application to cite the IGP for contempt for his refusal to follow the court directive, said that she had proved there was a case for Khalid to answer.
The judge fixed hearing for September 12.
Lawyer M. Kula Segaran, who appeared for Indira, said later that a court order would be served on Khalid for him to appear before the court on September 12.
"The Attorney-General's Chambers will appear for the IGP as Indira took action against Khalid in his capacity as the nation's top cop," said Kula Segaran, who is also Ipoh Barat MP.
He said his client was forced to go back to the court because Khalid refused to enforce an order given by Lee on May 30.
"She had to file the mandamus application to cite the IGP for contempt for his refusal to follow the court directive," he said.
Kula Segaran said this was a landmark ruling because the judge was bold in issuing a directive against the IGP.
Indira filed the ex-parte mandamus order last month after Khalid refused to locate Muhammad Ridzuan and hand over six-year-old Prasana Diksa to her.
A mandamus order is taken to compel a civil servant to perform or stop him from doing a certain act.
Ridzuan refused to hand over their youngest daughter Prasana Diksa to her despite a 2010 High Court order awarding custody of their three children to Indira.
He has held on to the child since April 2009.
The Shariah High Court in Ipoh had in 2009 given Ridzuan custody of the three children after he unilaterally converted them to Islam.
However, in July last year, the Ipoh High Court quashed the conversion of the children and ruled that the certificates of conversion were unconstitutional.
On May 30, the court which found Ridzuan guilty of contempt of court for failing to return Prasana to Indira, also granted her a recovery order and warrant of arrest against the ex-husband.
Khalid refused to follow the court order because there were two custody orders from a civil and shariah court, saying the police were sandwiched between two court systems. – July 25, 2014.
