UMNO AGM | MIC will support amendments to the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 should the bill be tabled again if non-Muslim rights are protected, said MIC president SA Vigneswaran.
Speaking to reporters at the sidelines of the Umno annual general assembly yesterday, Vigneswaran challenged the federal government to allow the bill to be tabled again.
"Nothing wrong with (the bill). It involves Muslims and has nothing to do with non-Muslims," said Vigneswaran, who attended the opening ceremony of the meeting.
However, he said MIC will only support the amendments if there are enough safeguards for non-Muslim rights in the Federal Constitution.
In 2017, Marang MP and PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang successfully had his Private Member's Bill tabled.
His bill was intended to increase the penalty caps for syariah offences as described in the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965.
Critics argued the bill would eventually pave way for the implementation of hudud penalties which are already prescribed in the laws of Kelantan and Terengganu.
Meanwhile, Vigneswaran said the MIC was supportive of Umno Youth's suggestion for Muafakat Nasional to be formalised.
"MIC agrees with this because we become part of Muafakat Nasional after tok guru (Hadi) visited us," he said.
Muafakat Nasional is the name of an informal political pact between Umno and PAS, while MIC is a member of formal political coalition BN, along with Umno and MCA. - Mkini
Umno pet dog. Now have two masters.
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