The High Court has ruled that a video posted by Muslim preacher Firdaus Wong, which appeared to promote covert religious conversions of minors to Islam, is unlawful and unconstitutional.
Justice Amarjeet Singh ordered Firdaus to permanently remove the video from all platforms, Free Malaysia Today reported. The court also granted a permanent injunction preventing him from uploading similar content or making related public statements in future.
Firdaus was also ordered to pay RM10,000 in legal costs to the eight non-Muslim parents who brought the legal action.
The video, posted in June 2023, showed Firdaus advising a man on how to handle requests from underage individuals seeking to convert to Islam without their parents’ knowledge. The clip quickly went viral and sparked multiple police reports against the preacher.
Police later launched an investigation under Section 505(c) of the Penal Code for making statements conducive to public mischief.
The parents filed their legal challenge on 18 July 2023, seeking a declaration that the video infringed their constitutional rights. Their lawyer, M Visvanathan, argued that the content violated Article 12(4) of the Federal Constitution, which grants parents the right to decide the religion of children under the age of 18.
Firdaus’s counsel, Norazali Nordin, told the court he would seek instructions from his client on whether to file an appeal.