KUALA LUMPUR: PAS will no longer be seen as part of Pakatan Rakyat if it tables the hudud bill in the Kelantan State Assembly next month as it does not have the backing of the coalition, warned a DAP lawmaker.

Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo said that should PAS carry on with the tabling of the hudud bill, it would amount to an open move against the Pakatan Rakyat common policy framework.

“In such an eventuality, those leaders in PAS who are behind the move must then be brave enough to acknowledge that they have pushed PAS to part ways with Pakatan Rakyat and put into question its credibility in terms of projecting itself as a party which is focused on and wants to work towards strengthening Pakatan Rakyat,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Gobind, who is head of DAP’s legal bureau, urged the PAS leadership to show commitment and respect the decisions made by the Pakatan leadership council.

“The tabling of this bill will also go against the agreement reached in the last Pakatan leadership meeting where it was made clear that there should be further discussions between all three parties before any further steps are taken on the matter.”

He also said PAS should not warn the DAP to keep out of the affairs of Kelantan.

He said PAS must remember that for as long as it chooses to remain in Pakatan Rakyat, DAP not only has the right but is also duty bound to ensure that PAS does not act in any manner which undermines Pakatan’s common policy framework.

In late December Gobind had warned that Pakatan would have to suspend working ties with PAS if the Kelantan government goes ahead with its plan to amend the Syariah Criminal Enactment that will pave the way for hudud implementation in the state.

He said Pakatan which consists of PKR, DAP and PAS must demonstrate its commitment to uphold the common policy framework, even if it means suspending or cutting ties with any partner who threatenes the spirit of the loose coalition.

“We must inspire confidence and demonstrate our commitment to the common policy framework in Pakatan. We must be firm and show that it is something that cannot and must not to be taken lightly,” Gobind had said.

Kelantan is proposing changes to the law ahead of its plan to table a private member’s bill in Parliament to facilitate implementation of hudud in the state.

Hudud covers crimes in Islamic law such as theft, highway robbery, adultery, alcohol consumption and sexual intercourse outside marriage.

Those convicted could face punishment such as amputation of limbs, flogging and death by stoning.

However, the tabling of the bill was delayed due to the massive floods that hit the east coast states in December. The bill is now scheduled to be presented in the legislative assembly on March 18. — The Malaysian Insider

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on February 23, 2015.