The Star Online: Nation
The Star Online: Nation |
- Court nears landmark decision on custody case
- ‘Clash of the titans’ expected at DAP polls
- Kamunting centre to stay with an agricultural concept
| Court nears landmark decision on custody case Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:00 AM PST IPOH: The High Court here is at the verge of making a landmark decision over a custody matter involving a Muslim-convert father who married a Hindu woman under civil laws. However, before it makes its judgment, Judicial Commissioner Lee Swee Seng said yesterday that the court has to first get the views of various specialised groups on the matter. He suggested that the Bar Council and Muslim lawyers associations be called to give their expert opinion on Feb 14; when lawyers for both parties are due back in court to submit further on the matter. JC Lee, who is presiding over contempt proceedings filed by M. Indira Gandhi against Mohd Ridzuan Abdullah to compel him to return their youngest child to her, said there was need for input from diverse groups as the issue at hand was critical. "This is an important history-in-making," said JC Lee, whose impending judgment on the matter would become a landmark decision for the nation. The contempt proceedings, which will be filed at the High Court, is to compel Mohd Ridzuan, formerly known as K. Patmanathan, to return five-year-old Prasana Diksa to Indira Gandhi, 38. In April 2009, Mohd Ridzuan had taken away Prasana, then 11 months' old and converted the child and two siblings – Tevi Darsiny, then 12, and Karan Dinish, then 11 – to Islam. The two elder children remained with their mother. On Oct 29 the same year, Mohd Ridzuan obtained a Syariah Court order that awarded him custody of the children. In a custody battle that ensued, the High Court granted Indira full custody of all three children and on March 11, 2010, Mohd Ridzuan was ordered to return Prasana to Indira. Mohd Ridzuan, however, has not returned the child to the mother, prompting Indira Gandhi to file contempt proceedings against her ex-husband. JC Lee ordered Mohd Ridzuan, who failed to make it to court yesterday – purportedly due to the expiry of his car road tax – to attend court proceedings and to produce the child at the next court date. Defence lawyer Asmuni Awi earlier argued there was no contempt or disobedience of the court order since Mohd Ridzuan had been granted custody by the Syariah Court. Plaintiff lawyer Aston Paiva, however, said the civil court should have jurisdiction over the matter since the couple's marriage was contracted under the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act. |
| ‘Clash of the titans’ expected at DAP polls Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:00 AM PST JOHOR BARU: The state DAP's party elections on Saturday is expected to be a heated one as two camps will be vying to control the state leadership. Seen as a "clash of the titans", one camp is aligned to current state chairman Dr Boo Cheng Hau while the other to secretary-general Lim Guan Eng and his father and party stalwart Lim Kit Siang. The Lims are rooting for Kluang MP Liew Chin Tong to be the next chairman but Dr Boo will be in his way as he seeks to defend his position. Dr Boo, who earlier indicated he will make way for new leaders, made an about turn, saying that it was in line with the wishes of the party's grassroots in Johor. He said that he made his decision based on the feedback that he received from members who wanted a local leader to lead the state until Pakatan Rakyat forms the next state government. "I leave it to the 500 over delegates to make their decision as I need to be elected as one of the 15 members before there is a secret ballot to decide on the positions," said Dr Boo, adding that 23 people are vying for the positions after nominations closed on Dec 27. Asked about Liew, Dr Boo just said that he too could be a future leader if he continues to stay here for a few years. Selangor-born Liew, who was based in Penang as Bukit Bendera MP between 2008 and 2013, only moved to Johor to contest the Kluang constituency during the general election in May last year. It is learnt that the other team has released a wish list for the state with Liew as chairman and Kulaijaya MP Teo Nie Ching as the deputy. It is understood that some local DAP leaders felt that Dr Boo was taking "too many risks" politically by staying on, as he has already helped build and lead the party towards victory in the previous general election. Meanwhile, current deputy chairman Norman Fernandez, who was also nominated, said that he would leave it to the delegates to decide as he had been in the state committee since 1997. |
| Kamunting centre to stay with an agricultural concept Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:00 AM PST PUTRAJAYA: The Kamunting Protective Detention Centre in Taiping will remain as a detention centre with an agricultural concept, said Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. He said the agricultural concept was in line with the Prison Department's initiative to be a self-sufficient organisation. "The prisoners to be placed here are those selected from various prisons who have been categorised as non-risky and serving short sentences. "They will produce foods such as vegetables and fish for the consumption of the inmates," he said. Dr Ahmad Zahid was speaking to newsmen after welcoming the ministry's new secretary-general Datuk Mohamad Khalid Shariff. Mohamad Khalid was previously the Defence Ministry deputy secretary-general. The centre, built on a 93.3ha site, has been used for those detained under the now-repealed Internal Security Act (ISA), which was replaced by the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma) on July 31, 2012. The last six ISA detainees at the centre were released on Sunday. Dr Ahmad Zahid said as a detention centre, it would house detainees under the Sosma, Dangerous Drugs (Special Preventive Measures) Act and Crime Prevention Act. "We will use the existing assets (to place detainees) without building new ones," he said. Based on the registration records, a total of 2,770 people have detained at the centre which was officially opened in November 1973. Detainees there were held for various offences that could threaten national security, including 1,702 communists, document falsification (433), terrorism (193), human trafficking (159), producing fake coins (66), religious and racial issues (40), subversiveness (38), intelligence (16), reformation activists (seven) and supply of nuclear components (one). |
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