When dealing with cases of unilateral conversion, we must be guided by the case of M. Indira Gandhi, in which the court decided that the religion of a minor could only be decided with consent from both parents.
This was the landmark ruling delivered by the Federal court on 29th January 2018 to end the almost decade-long case.
The ruling was reached based on the interpretation of the federal constitution and the fact that a federal law Guardianship of Infants Act 1961 supersedes any state law on the matter.
When a mother does not consent to her child converting, that said conversion is unlawful.
There is no more room to leave this particular case in any doubt. Hindu mother, Loh Siew Hong, must not be separated from her three children anymore.
We can also look at the case of the five young children (then aged around 3 to 9), in which Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais) today failed in its final court bid to reinstate the 2015 conversion of these children to Islam.
It was a unanimous decision.
The police and other authorities should respect these decisions and act swiftly in this case and other possible cases of similar cases. This should not repeat in the future as well.
I urge that this matter be put to rest and children be returned to Ms Loh.