The Malaysian High Court dismissed M. Indira Gandhi’s Nov 17, 2025 application for leave to initiate committal proceedings against the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and others for alleged failure to trace her former husband, K. Pathmanathan, also known as Muhammad Riduan Abdullah [1, 2, 3]. Judge Datuk Norsharidah Awang ruled the police investigations were ongoing and not yet complete, meaning no contempt could be established. She stated, "Under these circumstances, the court is unable to conclude that the proposed contemnors have failed or refused to comply with the court’s directions, as the very investigation ordered by the court has yet to be completed" [1].
Indira Gandhi had filed a similar application in 2020, which the High Court dismissed in 2022. Her appeal against that dismissal was rejected by the Court of Appeal in April 2024 [1, 2, 3].
Police investigators had reviewed information from the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) concerning withdrawals made by Pathmanathan. They identified two employer addresses linked to him and his wife in Kelantan but only began investigating these locations on June 15, 2026, nearly two months after receiving them from the EPF on April 24, 2026 [4]. At one address linked to Riduan’s wife, authorities found the premises locked and unoccupied [4].
Indira Gandhi’s counsel, Harsimran Kaur, questioned the delay. She said, "I am not questioning the efforts of the police, but I do not understand the delay. Why was action not taken immediately?" [4] The judge reprimanded police for the slow response, emphasizing the need for urgency. "Once you receive the information, action must be taken quickly. Sometimes, if you wait too long, the person may no longer be there. In this case, two months later, you were informed that the person had disappeared and was no longer at the location. You need to be more proactive," Datuk Norsharidah told the court [4].
The court granted police six more months to continue efforts to locate Riduan and set the next judicial monitoring session for November 27, 2026. On that date, police must provide an update on their investigation and the status of the arrest warrant against Riduan for the court’s review [1, 2, 4].
