A lawyer representing Naza Group chairman SM Faisal SM Nasimuddin said he has been instructed to initiate contempt proceedings against Petaling Jaya MP Maria Chin Abdullah after she criticised the syariah court for giving his ex-wife a seven-day jail sentence.

According to a report in Free Malaysia Today, Akberdin Abdul Kader said that the comments by Maria Chin Abdullah displayed an ignorance about the facts of the case. He said his client felt that the MP had "insulted the syariah court".

“She did not even consult the other side before making such a strong statement,” said Akberdin, who added that as a lawmaker, Maria had to be fair to both sides and respect the law.

Emilia was given the sentence yesterday by the Kuala Lumpur Shariah Court for rescheduling visitation dates for her children to be with their father.

She is currently out on RM5,000 bail pending appeal.

The ruling prompted criticism from Maria who said that Muslim women were still being discriminated against under the syariah legal system.

An aide to Maria told Malaysiakini that she would not be responding to Akberdin's announcement.

Faisal and Emilia divorced in 2016, and the latter was granted full custody of their three children, Fawwaz, Faiz and Farhan. 

Akberdin alleged that even though Faisal was granted visitation rights in July last year, he was not allowed to take their children out of Emilia's house.

“He was supposed to be able to take the children on Friday and return them on Sunday. But he was never allowed to do this, not once, not even for overnight stays, let alone a few hours during the day," the lawyer said, adding that the jail sentence showed the court was serious about the need for consensus when it comes to a court order.

Emilia has denied Faisal's allegations over the visitation rights.