KUALA LUMPUR – Putrajaya’s special committee on states’ competency to legislate Islamic laws will study issues arising from the Federal Court’s recent decision to strike down 16 shariah criminal provisions in Kelantan, Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj said today.
This could include studying the need to amend certain parts of the federal constitution as well as federal laws so there is clarity on state assemblies’ powers to enact shariah criminal laws.
The committee will take one year to study the issues and propose recommendations to harmonise the competency of state legislative assemblies when enacting Islamic law with provisions in the Federal Constitution.
“Among the issues to be studied are the states’ competency, past decisions of the Federal Court, and methods to empower the jurisdiction of the shariah court.
“I urge all parties, including legal experts, to help the special committee by providing knowledgeable, insightful and practical suggestions,” Sultan Sharafuddin said in a statement after chairing a meeting of the Malaysian National Council for Islamic Religious Affairs (MKI) in Putrajaya today.
The special committee has been given a period of one year from the date it was established to complete this task, and is to provide its recommendations to the MKI and then to the Council of Rulers for approval.
Sultan Sharafuddin also called on all parties to respect the Federal Court’s decision in the case brought by Kelantan lawyer Nik Elin Nik Zurina Abdul Rashid and her daughter.
“In dealing with this issue (the Federal Court’s decision), what is more important is our efforts to overcome the issues that have arisen by studying ways to expand the competency of the state legislature to enact shariah criminal laws within the framework set by the federal constitution.
“These efforts include examining if there is a need to propose amendments to certain provisions of the federal constitution and/or related federal laws, so as to ensure that the power of the state legislature to enact shariah criminal laws is clearly enshrined in the federal constitution without any ambiguity,” he said.
The special committee was established in August last year during the 70th MKI meeting.
Sultan Sharafuddin said various reactions to the Federal Court’s decision in the Nik Elin case had caused confusion among Muslims here, and he advised the community, its leaders and scholars to maintain decorum when expressing views and discussing the matter.
“There is no need to argue openly on matters that can be resolved privately through consultative discussions. We ought to celebrate differences of opinion and resolve our differences in an educated and prudent manner using the right channels.”
The sultan also cautioned that religious issues have become more politicised in the last few decades and he reminded all politicians not to take advantage of this.
“My reprimand is not aimed at any party, rather, I remind all politicians not to politicise every issue involving Islam, as it will become the capital for endless political disputes.”
The apex court on February 9 ruled in an 8-1 decision that the Kelantan legislative assembly had no power to enact 16 provisions in the Kelantan Shariah Criminal Code (I) Enactment 2019, as the offences in question fell within the purview of federal law.
Malaysia’s constitution stipulates which offences Parliament can make laws on (the Federal List or List I) and which ones state assemblies can legislate (State List or List II).
Nik Elin and her daughter filed their legal challenge in 2022, contesting 20 provisions, of which two were later dropped.
Of the remaining 18, the two that the Federal Court ruled as constitutional were Section 13 (selling or giving away a child to a non-Muslim or morally reprehensible Muslim) and Section 30 (words capable of breaking peace).
The Federal Court’s decision triggered outcry from leaders of PAS-led Kelantan, as well as Umno, who demanded amendments to the federal constitution to give states more power to make their own Islamic enactments. – February 15, 2024