They were from different parts of the world and from completely different backgrounds, factors that made the love story of Sultan Muhammad V and Rihana Oxana Gorbatenko extremely controversial. Just two years since becoming Malaysia's first monarch to abdicate after reports of his marriage to the Russian beauty queen emerged, Sultan Muhammad V is learnt to have divorced her by triple talaq.
Sultan Muhammad V had abdicated the throne in January of 2019 when reports of his marriage to Gorbatenko had emerged. It was reported that the two had apparently married in 2018 while Sultan Muhammad V was on medical leave.
It was never quite the fairytale love story even if Gorbatenko used her social media accounts to show the love she shared with Sultan Muhammad V. Now, it has been reported that he has divorced her by triple talaq - the practice in Islam by which Muslim men can divorce their wives by saying 'talaq' thrice.
While the reason for the divorce is not yet known, it has been learnt that Gorbatenko is not aware of it and that she believes she is still married to the former monarch. She has also continued posting photos with Sultan Muhammad V on her social media accounts.
The two have a son but local media reports have quoted lawyers of Sultan Muhammad V as saying that there is no objective evidence of who the biological father is.
