By P Ramasamy
MIC President S Subramaniam has done nothing useful for the Indian community but takes delight in the recent Federal Court decision that affirmed the supremacy of the civil courts in deciding cases of marriage and divorce of non-Muslim families.
He should read the full implications of the court decision, which is contradictory to what the court professes and makes no sense for the mother S Deepa.
While the court struck down the Syariah Court order, it only partially allowed for the operation of the Seremban High Court order that gave full custody of both children to Deepa.
At the same time, the court decision allowed Deepa’s Muslim convert ex-husband Izwan Abdullah, who abducted his son from her, to have custody of the boy. This does not make sense at all.
On one hand, the esteemed court allows for the supremacy of civil courts but on the other hand, it allowed the father to retain custody of his son.
This makes a mockery of the Law Reform Act (Marriage and Divorce) 1976.
The court decision implies among other things that if a parent who converts, “abducts” his or her children, sooner or later, he or she will be given full custody of the children.
The same fate awaits Indira Gandhi as well, who had her daughter “abducted” by her Muslim-convert ex-husband with the assistance of the religious body in Perak.
It is obvious Subramaniam fails to understand the full implications of the recent Federal Court decision. He simply wants to ride on decisions made by others without fathoming its full and dire implications.
He is so hard-up for publicity that he is happy to clutch at straws if this can afford him a political lifeline.
In the case of Deepa, her son who was born to Hindu parents has lost the golden opportunity to grow up as a Hindu as provided in the Law Reform Act (Marriage and Divorce).
There is no point for the five-man bench to speak about the supremacy of civil courts when its ultimate decision was one that sought compromise rather than justice for the aggrieved mother, Deepa.
The ultimate winner is not so much her husband, Izwan Abdullah, as he is merely a pawn in the larger social and cultural scheme of things that allows for Islamic hegemony in the country, but the political system that seeks and endorses Islamic hegemony.
Deepa, an ordinary Hindu is just another victim of a political juggernaut that has no mercy or compassion for those who are locked in custody battles, especially those who profess faiths other than Islam.
Subramaniam does not understand the larger framework of politics. He is a parachuted medical doctor who was brought in to the MIC so that he could perform the “dirty” work of Samy Vellu, its former president.
He is there in MIC merely to ensure the properties of his mentor and guide, Samy Vellu and that of his cronies, are intact.
The political, social and cultural plight of the Indian community is the least of his concerns.
Sorry, Subramaniam, the Federal Court decision does not put an end to conflicting court orders. It merely complicates matters for those parents who have become victims of unilateral conversions.
It merely postpones battles and tensions arising from unilateral conversions.
To date, Subramaniam has been in three cabinet committees on unilateral conversions, yet the community does not know what his contributions are.
The manner in which he was elected MIC president after undermining the former leader will be subject to legal battles in the near future.
Even Indian leaders of other Barisan Nasional-Indian component parties have lost confidence in him.
Subramaniam should not open his “big mouth” and say things that hurt the Indian community especially on matters relating to unilateral conversions.
P Ramasamy is Deputy Chief Minister II of Penang.
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