PETALING JAYA: Government departments have been instructed to halt all disciplinary actions against civil servants related to the now-unconstitutional criminal offence of enticing married women for sex, according to the Public Service Department (JPA).
In a circular issued on Sept 17, the JPA mandated that all pending disciplinary actions and suspensions associated with the invalidated section must be stopped and retracted.
JPA director-general Datuk Seri Wan Ahmad Dahlan Abdul Aziz stated that this directive follows the Federal Court's ruling on Dec 15 last year, which declared Section 498 of the Penal Code unconstitutional for its gender discrimination.
The Federal Court ruled that the section violated Article 8(2) of the Federal Constitution and repealed it in its entirety.
"That the law was intended to apply to the enticement of women only is also made amply clear by Section 132 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which states: 'No court shall take cognisance of an offence under Section 498...except upon a complaint made by the husband of the woman," Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat reportedly said in the judgement last year.
Under Section 498, a man could be sentenced to two years in jail or fined or both if convicted of enticing, taking away or detaining a married woman with criminal intent.
However, Wan Ahmad emphasised that civil servants could still face disciplinary action under the Public Officers (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations 1993 for immoral behavior, including extramarital affairs or inappropriate conduct, such as kissing in elevators or sharing pornographic material.
Departments may also refer officers to religious authorities for counseling in such cases.
