Alleged deviant doctrine teacher accused of touching girl inappropriately

A woman testified in court on Oct 10 that she had earlier filed two police reports against an alleged deviant doctrine teacher, accusing him of touching her in an inappropriate manner in separate incidents.

The court heard that no further action was taken after those two reports were made as there was no “objective evidence”. Nor was there evidence that the witness had lied.

The 27-year-old witness said she had filed the first report in 2015 after Mohd Razif Radi, now 67, allegedly touched her leg and kissed her hand in a car.

The woman, who cannot be identified due to a gag order, also testified that she had made the second report in 2020, over an alleged incident that took place in her home during a “healing session” when she was in Primary 6.

She told the court that she decided to do so after finding out about media reports in 2020 on his case, adding: “I just hoped Razif would stop his teachings.”

She testified that she had experienced anxiety, so her mother, who was one of Razif’s followers at the time, told her that he could help her with the condition.

Only she, her mother and Razif were home when the “healing session” took place, said the witness, who added that she was initially reluctant to take part in it.

The ritual involved the witness taking a shower while clad only in a sarong.

Responding to questions from Deputy Public Prosecutor Jini Pillai Eliathamby, the witness said that after taking a shower, she was still clad in the sarong when her mother ordered her to kneel before the bathroom door.

According to the witness, Razif then knelt beside her, whispered some prayers and blew into one of her ears and then the other.

The witness told District Judge Shaiffudin Saruwan that Razif also blew and kissed the top of her head, before sliding his hands down her arms.

She said: “I hid in my room (after the ritual)... My mother told me not to tell my father. I was too scared to do anything... (I felt) unsafe and disrespected, possibly violated... I didn’t really trust her after the healing session.”

The witness’ parents divorced in 2017, after which she lived with her father, while her younger sister lived with their mother.

The witness also said that she took part in a separate healing session at Mount Faber with Razif.

“(Razif and I) hugged each really closely... so that my bad energy would transfer to him and his good energy would transfer to me,” she added.

In another incident, she said that Razif, who is also a former massage therapist, massaged her after she complained of pain in her abdomen.

Razif, who has never been recognised as an Islamic teacher under the Asatizah Recognition Scheme, is claiming trial to one count of teaching a doctrine relating to the Muslim religion in a manner contrary to its laws.

Among other things, he allegedly taught his followers that gambling could be made permissible and that a “spiritual marriage” between a man and a woman could be valid.

The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore states on its website that gambling is prohibited in Islam.

Razif, a Singaporean, is represented by lawyer Simon Tan.

The witness who testified on Oct 10 was earlier diagnosed with conditions including mild autism.

Her voice cracked a few times as she gave her testimony, while Razif sat in the dock, hidden behind a screen.

At one point in court, the trial was halted for around 10 minutes after she said that her heart was racing. She joined her father in the gallery during the break and he comforted her.

When the trial resumed, DPP Pillai told the court that giving the testimony had caused stress and distress to the witness.

The witness told the court that her mother introduced her to Razif when she was in Primary 1.

When she was in upper primary school, she accompanied her mother to attend three to four classes that Razif conducted in his office in the Arab Street area.

She testified that Razif was usually calm and quiet, but this changed during one of the classes.

“My mother said he was going to have a spirit entering his body. Then I heard his voice change to a higher pitch. (The voice) reminded me of an old lady,” she said.

However, the woman could not recall what Razif told her mother and the other followers at the time.

The witness also testified that she had overheard her mother telling another person that according to Razif, gambling is permissible if the money is used to spread religion.

She told Judge Shaiffudin that a few days before her parents’ divorce in 2017, her mother told her that she wanted to marry Razif. But the older woman married another man instead.

The witness said: “A lot of my parents’ conflicts were because of (Razif’s) teachings... His teachings didn’t follow Islam, to begin with.”

When Mr Tan cross-examined the witness, she testified that she is still cordial with her mother and sister, now 24.

The witness also said that she had never heard Razif talk about gambling and “spiritual marriages”. The trial will resume in November.