RACIAL and religious issues have always been highly inflammable topics in the country.

However, there seems to be different rules for different people when it comes to offensive and insensitive remarks and actions.

We regularly see certain groups or people being allowed to get away with repeatedly making offensive remarks while others are punished for using just the wrong words.

We are all aware of the recent furore surrounding the controversial “Allah” socks issue sold at a local convenience store chain in Selangor, which saw Agong expressing his displeasure.

It also resulted in calls from Umno Youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh to boycott KK Mart.

Such a loud protest coming from a youth leader of the largest Malay-based party in the nation carries weight. Petrol bombs were lobbed at three KK Mart outlets.

Akmal was detained in Kota Kinabalu and released after two hours of questioning.

No one has been arrested yet for bombing the stores.

On the other hand, KK Mart’s owners, its supplier and well as two Malaysians commenting on the affair have been charged or already been sent to jail for offending the Muslims.

Free pass

Certain religious figures seem to have a free pass to insult minorities in the country.

Islamic preacher Muhammad Zamri Vinoth Kalimuthu has frequently made insensitive and disrespectful remarks about the Hindu faith.

Amid the “Allah” socks outrage, he has made insulting remarks about Hindu god Lord Shiva. Police reports calling for action have fallen on deaf ears.

In 2019, he said he left Hinduism because he couldn’t believe in “330 million gods” and “stone objects to which food was offered”.

As a result, he was arrested and investigated under section 298A of the penal code for causing disharmony on grounds of religion and section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 for misuse of network services.

However, the attorney-general decided not to pursue the case.

Zamri is not the only one to have escaped prosecution.

In another case, some 3,000 police reports were lodged nationwide, including Sarawak, against another controversial preacher Syakir Nasoha after a video showing him making disparaging comments about other religions and the Dayak community went viral.

In the clip, Syakir could be heard saying “at the end of time, disciples of non-Muslim religions will be scrambling together to kill Muslims in the world”.

He also claimed that Hindus and Buddhists were carrying out the killings of Muslims in India and Thailand.

He made similar statements about the Dayak community, alleging its members butchered and raped Muslims in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.

Despite the outrage and the available evidence, the AG again decided not to pursue the case.

In a letter, the AG said “the video was edited from its original sermon and the content of the original speech did not contain any statement that touched on religious sensitivity in Malaysia”.

Unbiased action

In yet another case, when Malaysia faced one of its biggest flood disasters in December 2021, another preacher, Idris Sulaiman, denounced Muslims for cleaning up the houses of worship of other faiths. He also insulted the Hindus.

In the video posted on Facebook titled Ilmu “Salaf Dot Com”, Idris said cleaning the places of worship of other faiths was akin to cleaning gambling outlets and discotheques. He also said temples were the homes of devils.

Idris was responding to a video showing volunteers, including students from International Islamic University Malaysia, cleaning a Hindu temple in Klang.

Despite more than 100 police reports lodged against Idris, no action was taken against the preacher.

In August 2022, then-law minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, in a written parliamentary reply, said the AGC was “still deciding” whether there was enough evidence to prosecute the preacher.

Earlier last year, another Muslim preacher Wadi Annuar Ayub said Hindus who participated in Thaipusam processions were “worshipping Satan”.

Wadi Annuar, who has more than a million Facebook followers, was commenting on a video clip of such a procession, which had Malays in it.

The Kedah-born preacher later apologised to the Hindu community for his remarks. Despite several police reports made against Wadi Annuar, no action was taken.

In another incident, a social media influencer made a racial slur after attending a concert by Indian singer and composer A.R. Rahman.

National hockey player Hanis Nadiah Onn appears to be one of the rare few who have been punished in Malaysia for racism. She was suspended for posting offensive comments about the same A.R. Rahman show, held in the capital last year January.

The failure by the authorities to take action against many people making disparaging racial and religious remarks clearly shows the double standards in Malaysia.

What are the Indian ministers doing about it? Only a few lawmakers have spoken out; others have kept silent.

If this continues, trust in the government and legal system will decline, particularly among Indians.

Authorities must take unbiased action against those who touch upon sensitive issues. Until then, Malaysia will remain a land of double standards. – April 6, 2024.