Jais raid on Hindu wedding was by the book, says Selangor religious exco

(Malay Mail Online) – The Selangor Islamic Religious Department’s (Jais) raid on a Hindu wedding and subsequent detention of the bride last week was done according to procedure, said the state’s religious affairs executive councillor Sallehen Mukhyi.

In a report by Sinar Harian today, Sallehen said Jais did not break the law when it acted on a tip-off it it received that the bride, Zarinah Abdul Majid, is a Muslim who was getting married to a Hindu according to Hindu marriage rites.

“But the timing of the raid has become an issue and we will investigate it to avoid this incident from recurring,” he was quoted saying by the Malay daily.

“This issue involved other faiths and we need to be careful in maintaining the sanctity of the religion,” said Sallehen.

Zarinah, 32 was detained by Jais officials in the midst of her Hindu wedding ceremony at a temple in Petaling Jaya for interrogation.

Marriage between a Muslim and non-Muslim is prohibited under the state’s Islamic laws.

She and her mother, believed to be Hindu, are being investigated under Section 10 of the Shariah Criminal Enactment (Selangor) 1995, for insulting or bringing disrepute to Islam.

Following the incident, Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim rebuked the religious authorities for the “embarrassment” and ordered Jais to assist Zarinah in switching her preferred religion.

Zarinah has claimed that she and her siblings were secretly converted by her Muslim convert father when they were children, but they have long been practising Hindus since their father divorced their mother and abandoned the family over 20 years ago.

While she asserts she applied to the National Registration Department (NRD) twice ― in 2007 and 2013 ― to have her religious status changed, the department claims it never received the applications.

Last week, Zarinah’s estranged father was quoted by English language daily The Star as insisting that his children were born Muslim and he would never permit them to renounce Islam.

The Malay Mail Online has not been able to contact Zarinah to verify the latest allegations.