Thursday 28 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 14): Federal lawmaker Maria Chin Abdullah has been ordered by the Syariah High Court here to appear before the court on Dec 2, to answer a contempt charge levelled against her by Naza Group executive chairman Datuk SM Faisal SM Nasimuddin.

This follows the leave granted by Syariah High Court judge Mohamad Fouzi Mokhtar to SM Faisal to initiate contempt proceedings against the Petaling Jaya member of parliament, whom the court found had brought the court to disrepute.

“Her statement was scandalous and contemptuous. This has affected the integrity of the Syariah Court,” Fouzi said in his ruling today. He also ordered Maria to appear before him on Dec 2, to answer the charge against her.

SM Faisal's lawyer, Datuk Akberdin Abdul Kader, confirmed the court's decision on the matter when contacted by theedgemarkets.com.

SM Faisal filed an application to obtain the court's leave to initiate contempt proceedings against Maria for issuing a statement that he alleged had criticised the Syariah court's decision last month, which ordered his ex-wife Emilia Hanafi be jailed seven days for not abiding by the court-granted visitation rights given to their father with regards to their three children, and rescheduling those visits on her own.

Maria, a former Bersih 2.0 chairman, had questioned the jail sentence imposed on Emilia, whose punishment had been deferred pending her appeal to the Syariah Court of Appeal, which is the final level of appeal in the Syariah court system. Pending her appeal, Emilia was granted a RM5,000 bail.

The issue arose after the lawmaker issued a press statement titled “Emilia Faisal Hanifi’s sentencing proves injustice against Muslim women still exists in the legal system”.

In the Sept 5 statement, Maria allegedthe syariah legal system was still discriminatory against Muslim women and referred to Emilia’s seven-day jail sentence.

Akberdin, in his submission to show-cause Maria, said her comments had cast aspersions on the syariah judicial system as she is a politician and holds public office as an elected representative.

Married in 2002, SM Faisal, 40, and Emilia, divorced 14 years later in 2016. The couple has three sons aged five to 12.

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