NEW DELHI, Dec 23 ― Malaysia is studying the practices of Commonwealth countries before setting up an independent law commission.

Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohamed Hanipa Maidin said India is one of the countries with vast experience in developing law institutions and Malaysia is keen to benefit from its experience.

"As Commonwealth countries, we share many similarities in our government institutions. We hope to gain from the expertise of countries such as New Zealand, Australia and India in setting up Malaysia's Law Reform Commission,” Mohamed Hanipa told Bernama.

The deputy minister is in New Delhi to meet officials from government legal agencies to learn how the Law Commission of India functions.

"We are doing a lot of things to improve our democracy. We want a specialised commission to review the laws that need revision,” Mohamed Hanipa said.

The government has engaged with the Bar Council of Malaysia, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and other stakeholders to seek their ideas, he said.

Once the government completes the necessary studies, a bill will be drafted to set up the commission, he added. ― Bernama