Battle for Islamic leadership hots up between PAS and Malaysia's royals

Nine Malay rulers’ influence in public affairs has come under increasing scrutiny

- Shannon Teoh

KUALA LUMPUR - The battle for Islamic leadership in Malaysia has been brought to the fore, after one of the sultans, traditional guardians of religion in the country's states, issued a rare royal rebuke of a politician from an Islamist party.

Sultan Sharafuddin Salahuddin of Selangor, who was also chairman of the National Council for Islamic Affairs at the time, chided Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) president Hadi Awang in a Feb 27 letter for allegedly questioning the commitment of the country's rulers to upholding Islamic law.

This followed the Federal Court's Feb 9 decision to nullify 16 laws in Kelantan's syariah criminal code, which had prompted Selangor's ruler to call for Malaysians to respect the Federal Constitution and not to politicise the court ruling.

The court had ruled that state legislatures cannot enact laws for matters already covered under federal laws enacted by Parliament.

But in a bold Feb 20 statement, Tan Sri Hadi appeared to lash out at scholars, lawmakers and even the rulers for continuing to be "colonised" by the framework of the Constitution, which he claimed was designed to deceive Muslims, who had in 1957 sought and obtained independence from British rule.

"It is a matter of our belief and faith to interpret or use our right to amend the Constitution to the proper path in obedience to Allah's guidance," he said in a Facebook post that has since been shared widely.