The reconciliation committee of the Lower Syariah Court in Kuala Lumpur on the matter of Nurul Izzah Anwar's divorce case is in a deadlock.

 

Judge Abdul Malek Awang in reading the committee’s report, said this was so because Nurul Izzah wants a divorce, but her husband, Raja Ahmad Shahrir Raja Salim, does not.

 

Following this, the court postponed today's proceedings to give an opportunity for Raja Ahmad ( right ) to scrutinise the report, as requested by his counsel, Zulkifli Che Yong.

Zulkifli questioned the validity of the committee members' action in having a short discussion on the matter before arriving at the decision that they could not reconcile.

He said Section 47 (9) of the of the Islamic Family Law (Federal Territories) Act gives a six-month period for the committee to meet and work for reconciliation.

Zulkifli further told the court there is another provision for the court to remove members of the committee should they be found to be unsatisfactory.

However, Nurul Izzah's lawyer, Normawaddah Ramli, objected to the application, arguing that her client would be affected if the committee is reviewed.

Normawaddah ( on the left ) then applied for the case to continue under Section 47 (14) and for Raja Ahmad to be advised to pronounce ‘talak’ (proclamation of divorce) before the court.

Abdul Malek then fixed Aug 7 to hear the case and ordered Raja Ahmad to be present.

 

The committee, chaired by a syariah officer, was formed on April 1, with representation by a member each from the families of Nurul Izzah and Raja Ahmad as well.

Nurul Izzah is also represented by her uncle Che Rosli Ibrahim while a family friend, Mohd Fauzi Mustaffa, is representing her family in the committee.