KUALA LUMPUR—A senior citizen was jailed two months and fined a total of Ringgit Malaysia (RM) 4,000 (US$ 1242.93) by the Sharia High Court here on Tuesday for possessing two books, which were deemed to be against Islam and for disrespecting the religious authority.
Sharie judge Muhamad Abdul Karim Wahab sentenced Kamarulzaman Karim, 61, to two months’ jail and a fine of RM 1,000 (US$ 310.73) for possessing the books entitled Al Furqan and Tabut – Penjelasan Tentang Segala Sesuatu by Haji Ahmad Kahar Haji Ahmad Jalal.
Judge Muhamad also fined Kamarulzaman RM 3,000 (US$ 932.20) for the offence of disrespecting the religious authority or disobeying, breaching or disputing the mufti.
“These deviant teachings are uploaded on social media everyday and I view this issue seriously. There is still room for you to repent. As a rational and matured person, you should reject the books,” said judge Muhamad upon passing the sentence.
In asking for leniency, the contract worker, who was unrepresented, said he had a son and three daughters, one of whom was still in school. Kamarulzaman said he also had to support his wife.
He also told the court that he chose to attend Islamic religious courses after he was charged on Apr 22 and has since repented.
Kamarulzaman said he had received the two books from Ahmad Kahar in 2008 and had kept them in a briefcase for fear that his wife would scold him if she saw them.
When Kamarulzaman was first produced in court on Apr 22, he had pleaded guilty to possessing the books.
The offense was committed at a unit in the DBKL flats at Bandar Baru Sentul here between 1.15 am and 1.50 am on Apr 22, the same day he was arrested and charged.
He was charged under Section 13(b) of the Syariah Criminal Offences Act (Federal Territories) 1997 relating to religious publications against Islamic Law.
Kamarulzaman also admitted to the second charge of disobeying a Federal Territories Fatwa gazetted on Jan 25, 2007 pertaining to the deviant teachings of Haji Ahmad Kahar Haji Ahmad Jalal.
He was charged for this under Section 9 of the same Act.
On Oct 21, 2009, the Shah Alam Syariah High Court sentenced deviant Rasul Melayu leader Ahmad Kahar to 10 years’ jail, six strokes of the rotan and a fine of RM 16,500 (US$5145.26).
Ahmad Kahar was charged with five counts of offences under the Sharia Criminal Offences Enactment (Selangor) 1995.
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