KUALA LUMPUR, July 18 — Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail would be well advised to stop playing down the controversy surrounding a Kelantanese man who took a Thai girl the same age as his daughter as his bride, lawyer Latheefa Koya said today.

The member of Lawyers for Liberty who is also in PKR, the same party as Dr Wan Azizah criticised her president's recent plea for the public “not to lynch (the man) on social media,” saying the call was akin to defending the “culprit.”

Latheefa then questioned Dr Wan Azizah who is the women, family and community development minister on concrete actions to deal with the abhorrent marriage to a minor.

“Firstly, it is impossible to understand what the DPM means by 'alleged incident.' The culprit himself has admitted to the marriage, and been fined for it,” Latheefa, also a member of Lawyers for Liberty, said in a statement.

“Worse, he has also publicly admitted to lusting after the child victim since she was seven years old!

“It appears to be another attempt by the DPM to downplay this outrageous case,” she added.

Latheefa also took issue with Dr Wan Azizah's recent statement calling for the “family's privacy” to be protected, and compared it to her experience when her husband was a prisoner.

The lawyer said it was absurd to be talking about privacy when a serious sexual crime has been perpetrated upon a child.

“Her call to the public not to lynch the culprit on social media is incomprehensible, given that the crime is admitted by the perpetrator himself,” she said.

“Why defend this self-confessed pervert by claiming that the concerned public are 'lynching' him?”

Latheefa then asked if Dr Wan Azizah was trying to stifle public opinion on the matter, and insisted that the public backlash against the 41-year-old man was justified.

She also asked Dr Wan Azizah the need for an investigation when the concept of child marriage is legally and morally wrong.

“Is this an attempt to stifle public discussion of the matter? The public are entitled to criticise the actions of the culprit and call for an end to child marriages in Malaysia,” she said.

“Further, it is baffling that Wan Azizah still claims that multiple agencies are investigating the matter. The facts are clear, and the perpetrator has confessed.

“What is the necessity for an interminable and ponderous investigation in this case?”

Dr Wan Azizah has been heavily criticised for the way she handled the controversy.

The deputy prime minister had previously said that the issue is legally “complicated,” and that the authorities are powerless to act until there is a law banning child marriage in place.

She then called on the public to remain calm and give the family of the child bride "privacy".

This prompted fierce criticism from child rights groups and human rights lawyers, who saw her as being too soft on the issue.

Dr Wan Azizah had insisted she is strongly against child marriage.