Hadi riding on K'tan syariah enactment wave - Nik Nazmi

Hadi riding on K'tan syariah enactment wave - Nik Nazmi

Published: Feb 15, 2024 9:00 PM


PKR vice-president Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad claimed that Abdul Hadi Awang was “riding” on the Federal Court decision to strike down 16 provisions of the Kelantan syariah criminal code.

Nik Nazmi, who is the natural resources and environmental sustainability minister, said that the PAS president was deliberately casting doubts to mislead and create fear among Muslims.

“Of course, Hadi is trying to ride on the issue related to the cancellation of 16 syariah offences in the Kelantan Syariah Criminal Code Enactment,” he said in a statement today.

This comes after Hadi lamented that Islamic countries were losing their integrity for maintaining colonial laws, despite them achieving independence.

He said that many legislative amendments have since been made by neglecting Islamic interests, despite it being stipulated in the Federal Constitution that Islam is the country’s official religion.

Hadi also took a swipe at court judges, claiming that their minds were influenced by colonial thinking.

He provided no context to his statement, but it is believed to be related to the Federal Court decision in favour of lawyer Nik Elin Zurina Nik Abdul Rashid, who challenged 18 Kelantan syariah criminal provisions.

In response, Nik Nazmi said that the very Constitution deemed colonial by Hadi has preserved Islam as the federal religion and guaranteed the rights of adherents of other religions and beliefs.

“The Constitution also stipulates the separation of syariah courts from civil courts in the amendment of Article 121 (1A).

“This makes the syariah courts independent from the interference of ordinary courts and considered equal,” he said.

Nik Nazmi added that Hadi failed to clarify that the government had established the Special Committee to Review the Competency of the State Legislative Assemblies to Enact Islamic Laws in December 2023.

“This committee is headed by the former chief justice Zaki Azmi and is also composed of 10 other committee members.

“This committee helps to empower the syariah courts in Malaysia,” he said.