KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has reminded politicians not to politicise the issue of the constitutional challenge to the Kelantan Syariah Law petition filed by lawyer Nik Elin Zurina Nik Abdul Rashid.
He said that the real issue regarding the petition is whether state jurisdiction can implement its own laws without consulting the federal government.
He said that there are clear separations of legislative powers, where there are jurisdictions where it falls under the state, federal, and also joint jurisdiction.
"This is not a substantive decision about Syariah, it is about jurisdiction. Can the state make (laws)?
"Imagine (if) all states make (their own) laws and each state has contradictions," he said during Prime Minister Question Time (PMQT) today.
He was responding to the question posed by Mohd Azizi Abu Naim (PN-Gua Musang) to state the government's stance on the issue in the Dewan Rakyat today.
According to his speech text shared to the media, Anwar said that a special committee has been established in accordance with the decree of the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah during the meeting of National Council for Malaysian Islamic Religious Affairs (MKI) on Aug 28 this year.
He said that the special committee is responsible for examining and refining issues related to the competence of state legislature regarding the drafting of Islamic law as well as the jurisdiction of the Syariah Court according to item 1 of the List of States in the Ninth Schedule to the Federal Constitution so that the best and most harmonious solution can be reached.
"This special committee is expected to convene for the first time on Dec 4 this year to set the direction in the implementation of studies and research and then recommend proposed solutions to the problems of Islamic law in Malaysia," said in the text.
Yesterday, the Federal Court reserved its judgement and will set a later date to deliver its verdict on the petition.
The constitutional challenge was initiated by Nik Elin Zurina and her daughter, Tengku Yasmin Nastasha Tengku Abdul Rahman on May 25, 2022.
They utilised Article 4(4) of the Federal Constitution to directly approach the Federal Court, listing the Kelantan state government as the respondent.
