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paranjothy talks on Kerling incident in june 2006

December 22nd, 2007
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Gerakan Youth slams temple demolitions
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/52340
Jun 10, 06 9:12pm
The wanton destruction of Hindu temples by local councils in several states must now stop as it could fan religious and racial animosity among Malaysians, Gerakan Youth warned today.

“We strongly believe that the local authorities have blatant disrespect for other religions in this country and for violating the Federal Constitution by their disrespectful manner in which places of worship have been demolished,” its  deputy chief S Paranjothy said in a strongly worded statement.

Article 11 of the Federal Constitution guarantees freedom of religion while laws such as Section 295 of the Penal Code describes defiling religious buildings as a criminal offence.

Paranjothy’s criticism comes hot on the heels of a heated parliamentary roundtable on temple demolitions last Sunday attended by more than 160 temple caretakers, all decrying the recent trend.

The latest incident revolved around the Muniswaran Alayam temple in Setapak, Kuala Lumpur which was destroyed by DBKL on Thursday.

Remember ‘Kerling incident’

“We hereby issue a stern warning to all local councils to stop demolishing temples and to avoid the repeat of another 'Kerling incident' because of their (local governments) insensitivities of the right of minority groups,” added Paranjothy.

In 1977, five Muslim Malays, accused of being involved in a series of temple desecration, were killed after being ambushed near the vicinity of a Hindu temple by several Indian Hindus in Kerling, near Kuala Selangor.

The incident drew a storm of controversy and the assailants were all given jail sentences. They were then represented by former MIC secretary-general DP Vijandran.

Paranjothy argued that most of such temples have been long in existence and the local authorities should show sensitivity by relocating them to appropriate places.

MIC has failed

Paranjothy also took a swipe at fellow Barisan Nasional component party MIC over their failure to protect these temples.

“We regret that the MIC who claims to represent and champion the cause of the Indian community in this country has failed to safeguard and protect these temples from being demolished,” he added.

He also called on the Malaysian Hindu Sangam, an MIC initiated religious body, to be more proactive in protecting Hindu temples and not take a “passive stand”.

Next on Paranjothy’s firing-line was the Attorney-General’s Chambers, which he claimed has yet to take any action on police reports made against local councils in regards to temple demolitions.

“We sincerely hope that the AG’s Chambers is not biased towards the majority by discriminating the minority of their rights enshrined in the Federal Constitution. In this instance, silence is not golden,” he stressed.

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deputy minister johari on use of Allah word

December 21st, 2007
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I'm not an expert on Islam, but since Internet is around, I googled around for the word "Allah". These are some of the interesting things I found:

1. From http://emuslim.com/WhoIsAllah.asp

First of all, it is important to note that "Allah" is the same word that Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews use for God. If you pick up an Arabic Bible, you will see the word "Allah" being used where "God" is used in English. This is because "Allah" is the only word in the Arabic language equivalent to the English word "God" with a capital "G". Additionally, the word "Allah" cannot be made plural or given gender (i.e. masculine or feminine), which goes hand-in-hand with the Islamic concept of God. Because of this, and also because the Qur'an, which is the holy scripture of Muslims, was revealed in the Arabic language, some Muslims use the word "Allah" for "God", even when they are speaking other languages. This is not unique to the word "Allah", since many Muslims tend to use Arabic words when discussing Islamic issues, regardless of the language that they speak. This is because the universal teachings of Islam – even though they have been translated in every major language – have been preserved in the Arabic language.

 

It is interesting to note that the Aramaic word "El", which is the word for God in the language that Jesus spoke, is certainly more similar in sound to the word "Allah" than the English word "God". This also holds true for the various Hebrew words for God, which are "El" and "Elah", and the plural form "Elohim". The reason for these similarities is that Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic are all Semitic languages with common origins. It should also be noted that in translating the Bible into English, the Hebrew word "El" is translated variously as "God", "God" and "angel"! This imprecise language allows different translators, based on their preconceived notions, to translate the word to fit their own views. The Arabic word "Allah" presents no such difficulty or ambiguity, since it is only used for Almighty God alone. Additionally, in English, the only difference between "God", meaning a false God, and "God", meaning the One True God, is the capital "G". In the Arabic alphabet, since it does not have capital letters, the word for God (i.e. Allah) is formed by adding the equivalent to the English word "the" (Al-) to the Arabic word for "God/God" (ilah). So the Arabic word "Allah" literally it means "The God" – the "Al-" in Arabic basically serving the same function as the capital "G" in English. Due to the above mentioned facts, a more accurate translation of the word "Allah" into English might be "The One -and-Only God" or "The One True God".

More importantly, it should also be noted that the Arabic word "Allah" contains a deep religious message due to its root meaning and origin. This is because it stems from the Arabic verb ta'Allaha (or alaha), which means "to be worshipped".

 

…This brings us to a more important point: It should be clearly understood that what Islam is primarily concerned with is correcting mankind's concept of Almighty God. What we are ultimately going to be held accountable at the end of our life is not whether we prefer the word "Allah" to the word "God", but what our concept of God is. Language is only a side issue. A person can have an incorrect concept of God while using the word "Allah", and likewise a person can have a correct concept of God while using the word "God". This is because both of these words are equally capable of being misused and being improperly defined. As we've already mentioned, using the word "Allah" no more insinuates belief in the Unity of God than the use of the word "God" insinuates belief in the Trinity – or any other theological opinion. Naturally, when God sends a revelation to mankind through a prophet, He is going to send it in a language that the people who receive it can understand and relate to.

 

Some of the biggest misconceptions that many non-Muslims have about Islam have to do with the word "Allah". For various reasons, many people have come to believe that Muslims worship a different God than Christians and Jews. This is totally false, since "Allah" is simply the Arabic word for "God" – and there is only One God. Let there be no doubt – Muslims worship the God of Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and Jesus – peace be upon them all. However, it is certainly true that Jews, Christians and Muslims all have different concepts of Almighty God. For example, Muslims – like Jews – reject the Christian beliefs of the Trinity and the Divine Incarnation. This, however, doesn't mean that each of these three religions worships a different God – because, as we have already said, there is only One True God. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all claim to be "Abrahamic Faiths", and all of them are also classified as "monotheistic". However, Islam teaches that other religions have, in one way or another, distorted and nullified a pure and proper belief in Almighty God by neglecting His true teachings and mixing them with man-made ideas

 

As Muslims, we think that it is unfortunate that we have to go into details on such seemingly minor issues, but so many falsehoods have been heaped upon our religion, that we feel that it is our duty to try to break down the barriers of falsehood. This isn't always easy, since there is a lot of anti-Islamic literature in existence, which tries to make Islam look like something strange and foreign to Westerners. There are some people out there, who are obviously not on the side of truth, that want to get people to believe that "Allah" is just some Arabian "God", and that Islam is completely "other" – meaning that it has no common roots with the other Abrahamic religions (i.e. Christianity and Judaism). To say that Muslims worship a different "God" because they say "Allah" is just as illogical as saying that French people worship another God because they use the word "Dieu", that Spanish-speaking people worship a different God because they say "Dios" or that the Hebrews worshipped a different God because they sometimes call Him "Yahweh". Certainly, reasoning like this is quite ridiculous! It should also be mentioned, that claiming that any one language uses the only correct word for God is tantamount to denying the universality of God's message to mankind, which was to all nations, tribes and people through various prophets who spoke different languages."

2. From http://understanding-islam.com/related/text.asp?type=question&qid=69&sscatid=8

Question:

What is the derivation of the word "Allah"? Some scholars say it derives from al+ illah ("the God"), but many Muslim Ulema and translators of the Qur'an (such as Maulana Muhammad Ali) disagree with this, and say that "Allah" is whole in itself, as a proper name for the Supreme Creator. But is there any philological relationship between Allah and other Semitic terms for "God" such as Eloah (Hebrew) and Alaha (Aramaic/Syriac)?

Thank you.

Peace and blessings of Allah be with you.

Answer:

Although a lot has been said about the philology of the word 'Allah', however, in my opinion, the former of the two opinions noted by you seems to be closer to the correct one. A detailed discussion compiling the opinions of various scholars of the Arabic language regarding the origin of the word can be seen in "Lisaan al-Arab" under the word "Aaliha" (a-l-h). In my opinion, 'Allah' is an Arabic word meaning 'the God'. According to the general principle of making proper nouns from common nouns in the Arabic language, the word "ilah" (common noun) has been converted to "al-ilah", which became "Allah" due to the turgidity and the slight difficulty of pronouncing the word "al-ilah".

The Qur'an, because its prime and first addressees were the Arabs, used the word "Allah" for the Supreme Being, as that had traditionally been the word used for the Supreme Being in that language. The same had been the case in the older scriptures. Those scriptures, like the Qur'an, used the particular words for the Supreme Being, which were already in vogue in those languages, to refer to the Supreme Being.

However, there have been scholars of the Arabic language who ascribe to the opinion that "Allah" is the actual name of the Supreme Being. It is indeed important to analyze the evidence that they have provided to support their opinion. Nevertheless, I feel that to give God a name is a requirement of us, humans. God, being the absolute being is in no need for a name.

3. From http://www.islam-info.ch/en/Who_is_Allah.htm

In the technical vocabulary of linguistics, the word Allâh is Jâmid, that is, it is not derived from any other word. In the pronunciation of Allâh, the letter ‘L’ is stressed. The word Allâh is not a construction of al-ilâh as some people think, but a different and an independent word. The first two letters Al in the word Allâh are an integral, inseparable part of the word. They do not denote the definite article Al of Arabic, which is equivalent to the English ‘the’. In Arabic, the prefix Al is added before the noun to emphasize the word in the sense of 'most' or 'all', for example al-Rahmân – the Most Gracious. Sîbwaih, the great grammarian, and Khalîl, the great linguistic, say, “Since Al in the beginning of the word Allâh is inseparable from it, so it is a simple substantive, not derived from any other word.”

If Al in All̢h were an additional prefix, the common exclamation y̢ All̢h, (O All̢h!), would not be permitted according to the rules of Arabic grammar, as the form y̢ al-il̢h or y̢ al-Rahm̢n are not permissible in Arabic. Moreover, this supposition would mean that there were different gods Р̢lihah (plural of il̢h), one of which became gradually known as al-il̢h and was then contracted into All̢h. This supposition is not correct. All̢h has always been the name of the Eternal Being (Hughes: Dictionary of Islam), nor has the word All̢h ever been applied to anyone else but the Divine Being. The pagan Arabs had numerous il̢hs or gods, but none of them was ever called All̢h.

This being the proper name of the Supreme Being has therefore no parallel or equivalent in any other language of the world. The English word ‘god’ is applied to any religious object of worship. Most probably it is related to ‘good’ and origins from heathen mythologies. Jehovah, which is the Aramaic or Hebrew expression Ya Howâ, literally means most closely ‘O! That’ or ‘O! Thou’ used to address a Deity, the emphasis is on Huwa which is to emphasize an Existence, therefore it can hardly be a proper name. The Hindus give their senior deity the name of Par-Mâtma (the Super Soul), Par-Barham (the Super and the Great), Par-Mishwar (the Great King or Owner), The Parsis give their supreme God the name of Yazdan and Hermes. In the Sikh religion, their great Deity is called Satt which means the Truth. The use of Jehova in the New Testament by the Witnesses of Jehova is a new invention. In the original Greek version and older versions of the New Testament this name was never used and Jesus never employed the name "Jehova". Although most Christians are unaware of it, the Aramaic speaking Jesus also used the word Allâh (or ‘Allaha’). Christians speaking the Semitic languages still use it. In the Greek and Latin writings this was then rendered to theos or deos, the generic words for ‘god’ in these languages. These words are derived from Dyeus, the name of a heathen god. The French ‘dieu’ or the English ‘deity’ are also etymologically based on that word.

4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allah

The term Allāh is most likely derived from a contraction of the Arabic article al- and ʾilāh "deity, god" to al-lāh meaning "the [sole] deity, God" ( ho theos monos), L. Gardet states.[2] Another theory traces the etymology of the word to the Aramaic Alāhā.[2]. Cognates of the name "Allāh" exist in other Semitic languages, including Hebrew and Aramaic. [4] The corresponding Aramaic form is אֱלָהָא ˀĔlāhā in Biblical Aramaic and ܐܰܠܳܗܳܐ ˀAlâhâ or ˀĀlōho in Syriac. [9].

According to Gerhard Böwering, the contraction of al- and ʾilāh in forming the term Allāh (“the deity” in the masculine form) parallels the contraction of al- and ʾilāha in forming the term al-Lāt (“the deity” in the feminine form). [10]

Arabic-speakers of all Abrahamic faiths, including Christians and Jews, use the word "Allah" to mean "God". [4] The Christian Arabs of today have no other word for 'God' than 'Allah'.[6] Arab Christians for example use terms Allāh al-ab (الله الآب) meaning God the father, Allāh al-ibn (الله الابن) mean God the son, and Allāh al-ruh al ghodus (الله الروح القدس) meaning God the Holy Spirit (See God in Christianity for the Christian concept of God).

Deputy Minister Johari says the word is from Arabic language, so I suppose all those who speak Arabic can use it. Religion is a sensitive issue, so I hope this issue is not misinterpreted and offend those people of Arabic descent who may not be Muslims. Again, I'm not an expert, so my apologies if there's any mistake here.

Johari: Only Muslims can use 'Allah'
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/76302
Soon Li Tsin | Dec 21, 07 5:31pm

The word 'Allah' can only be used in the context of Islam and not any other religion, said the Deputy Internal Security Minister Johari Baharum.

Asked why a new condition will be imposed on Catholic weekly newspaper Herald when its annual publishing permit is next renewed, the deputy minister said this is to prevent confusion. 

"Only Muslims can use 'Allah'. It's a Muslim word, you see. It's from (the Arabic (language). We cannot let other religions use it because it will confuse people," he said when contacted today.

"We cannot allow this use of 'Allah' in non-Muslim publications, nobody except Muslims. The word 'Allah' is published by the Catholics. It's not right."

The Herald, the organ of the Catholic Church in Malaysia, had been facing problems in renewing its publishing permit allegedly because of the word 'Allah' was used in referring to 'God' in its Bahasa Malaysia section. 

The ministry has also allegedly told the publisher to remove the entire Bahasa Malaysia section or the permit will not be renewed when it expires in two weeks.

The Herald, which is published in four languages – English, Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil – has a circulation of 12,000.

Johari noted that other publications, such as Buddhist magazines, do not use the word 'Allah' when referring to God.

"The Herald can use other words but not 'Allah'. That will confuse people," he claimed.

Basis of decision

He said the decision was made based on a report submitted by the publications department of the ministry.

"Previously no one knew (about this). I made the decision based on a report submitted to me that was prepared by an officer," he explained.

However, when asked why the Herald is being told to remove its Bahasa Malaysia section – rather than use of the word 'Allah' – Johari was unable to comment.

"I'm not sure about it, I have to check again. As far as I know they used the word 'Allah' and we cannot allow that," he reiterated.

He further pointed out that the word 'Allah' cannot be printed on t-shirts or other garments and those who have done so have been warned by his ministry.

The use of 'Allah' outside of Islam has stirred controversy in Malaysia previously. Four years ago, the Bible in the Iban language was banned because it translated the word 'God' as Allah Taala, which resembles Islam's name for God. 

The ban was, however, lifted after protests from the Christian community.

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Shaving head to support Hindraf

December 21st, 2007
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Oh no! If i shave my head for any other reason, it may be taken as supporting Hindraf! 🙂 Hmmm…what if all those who shave their heads during Thaipusam do it as a support for Hindraf. That would mean thousands of people!!!

Hindraf supporters shave heads to protest detention
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/76265
Dec 20, 07 2:13pm

More than a dozen ethnic Indian activists shaved their heads outside Batu Caves temple today to protest the detention of their leaders under the tough Internal Security Act (ISA).

Five leaders of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), calling for an end to alleged discrimination of Indians in multi-racial Malaysia, were held last week under the ISA which allows for indefinite detention without trial.

More than 100 Indians gathered on the banks of a river near a temple at Batu Caves, just outside Kuala Lumpur, where 16 people shed their hair.

"The 16 of us have shaved our heads as a protest against the detention of the five leaders of Hindraf who are being held under the ISA," said activist S Jayathas.

"We do not believe they are a threat to national security and we think the ISA should be abolished," he added.

According to rights group Suaram, 89 people are currently being held under the ISA with almost half of those held being alleged Islamic militants.

Gandhi posters

The group then carried pictures of Indian non-violence Independence leader Mohandas K Gandhi as they headed towards the temple where prayers were held.

"In the Hindu religion, people shave their heads as a sign of mourning," said opposition PKR leader Sivarasa Rasiah, who was present at the event.

"Here, it reflects the sadness over the detention of the leaders and that protests against their detention and the fight against discrimination will continue," he told AFP.

Hindraf enraged the government last month by mounting a mass rally alleging discrimination in Malaysia, which is dominated by Muslim Malays.

Police used tear gas, water cannon and baton charges to break up the street protest, which drew 30,000 people and came just two weeks after another rare demonstration organised by electoral reform campaigners.

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Khir Toyo on temple demolition

December 21st, 2007
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Again, the temple demolition is stated as done after Deepavali. Click below to read more on the confusing dates:

http://poobalan.com/blog/borninmalaysia/2007/12/09/khir-toyo-meets-padang-jawa-folks/

Maybe they are talking about the outer structure and temple building itself, while the most important is the deities.

Khir Toyo: I cry for the squatters too
source: http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/76264
Nash Rahman & Beh Lih Yi | Dec 20, 07 2:33pm

Selangor Menteri Besar Dr Mohd Khir Toyo said he had done his best in the handling of a series of emotionally-charged demolitions of squatter houses and temples in the state.

“I saw the pictures (of the demolitions), I feel very sad. I am in a difficult position – to choose between one family and 10 families. Of course, as a leader, I’ve to choose 10.

“If I adopt the minority view, I am not being fair to everybody. I also cried (for them), but I need to choose,” he told Malaysiakini when asked on the controversies in a 90-minute interview at his office in Shah Alam last week.

The menteri besar, who took office in 2000, added that the state government has provided alternatives to the squatters including better housing scheme and financial assistance before asking them to relocate.

“We take action because we need to develop (the area) and fulfill our promise to the 80 percent (who agreed to move),” he said.

He described the 20 percent who refused to budge as a “minority group influenced by opposition parties”.

Open clashes

A visibly upset Mohd Khir also lamented that the minority group should have given in to the rest and not to “refuse everything” that was offered.

He revealed that even one of his relatives was not spared from eviction.

“In Kampung Rimba Jaya, one of them is my uncle’s son who lived there. He came and see me (to ask for help) but I said ‘no’. The land doesn’t belong to the state, (and) if I don’t settle the issue today, it will come up in future,” the 42-year-politician asserted.

Scenes of brutal confrontation emerged during the two most recent demolitions of squatters in Kampung Berembang near Ampang and Kampung Rimba Jaya in Shah Alam.

In both occasions, local authority enforcement officers openly clashed with residents when they forced their way in to the squatter area to demolish the houses – with the aid of tear gas and water cannons – when the residents refused to budge. Dozens of arrests were also made.

Since the demolitions, some of the defiant squatters, including women and children, are living in makeshift tents near their demolished homes.

The spate of squatters demolition done under the name of development is in line with the ‘zero squatter’ policy set by the Selangor state government, which it had targeted to achieve two years ago.

Social activists have criticised the high-handed actions in the demolition of squatter areas. Often the enforcement officers moved in even before the disposal of court cases where the residents had challenged the eviction order.

However, residents in Kampung Berembang – some of whom have lived there since the 1960s – won a minor court victory last week when a high court denied the developer possession of the land and set aside its injunction to prohibit evicted squatters from returning to the area.

Kept changing ‘golf pose’

On the demolition of temples in Selangor which has upset the Indian community, Mohd Khir said the state government had to face the intractable issue of temples being built on private or reserved land.

“If it is private land, we always put a condition that the landowner must provide (another piece of) land to relocate the temple. In fact, we force them to give some compensation to the local temple.

“When we discussed (with the local residents), there is often no problem. However, when outsiders come into picture, there is problem – they make the matter worse,” the menteri besar claimed.

Mohd Khir appeared to brush aside the criticism of MIC president and Works Minister S Samy Vellu who was irked by the demolition of a 100-year-old temple in Kampung Rimba Jaya in late October.

“They created the story of 100-, 200-year-old temple, (which is) not true. We know the oldest temple in the state… I don’t know what happened to him (on why Samy Vellu had reacted the way he did) – we demolished the temple only after Deepavali,” he said.

While the local authorities were stopped from demolishing the temple a few days before Deepavali, they however returned to complete the job soon after the Hindus’ most important festival.

Mohd Khir stressed that the state government’s move to demolish the temple was not made abruptly and they had started discussions and negotiations with the local residents for years.

“They kept on changing their ‘golf pose’ – we followed, but still we can’t do much,” he lamented.

‘No big impact’ on BN chances

Nevertheless, Mohd Khir remained optimistic and was of the view that such controversies would not jeopardise the ruling Barisan Nasional’s chances in Selangor in the next general elections due next year.

“After we give clear explanation, the people will become more reasonable and accept it. The issue turns into a big issue often due to no clear explanation… We are very caring actually,” he emphasised.

But he hoped voters do not cast their votes emotionally in the polls.

“Sometimes we have to make unpopular decision, but that is the reality that we have to face. We don’t want to be a party that promise yang bukan-bukan (something not workable) but can’t fulfill them after the election.

“The opposition knows they can never be the government so they promised macam-macam (all sort of things). They don’t really have commitment,” he argued.

Highlights of the interview

On Kg Berembang and Kg Rimba Jaya

Those in Rimba Jaya and Berembang are a minority group which is not happy. They are less than 20 percent (of the total residents). We have discussed with them at the initial stage until we reached a decision that the majority are satisfied with, only then we act. These squatters are to be moved to a better place and housing rental is being paid by the developer, state government or local authority until their houses are completed.

But there is a small group not happy because they applied for the land to be given to them or they argued the land was developed by them. We have explained that the land is privately-owned, not government-owned. We have many discussions with everybody. Take Rimba Jaya – we started talking about the issue five years back. Berembang was four years back.

On the temple demolition in Shah Alam

They created the story of 100-, 200-year-old temple, (which is) not true. We know the oldest temple in the state. There are about 810 big temples in Selangor and thousand of small temples. I don’t know what happened to him (MIC president S Samy Vellu who was upset over the demolition). We demolished the temple after Deepavali.

Impact on BN’s chances in general elections

Rakyat has to see the performance of the BN government. We are not simply doing something, we are doing it for our future. Sometimes we have to make unpopular decision, but that is the reality we have to face. We don’t want to be a party that promise yang bukan-bukan but can’t fulfill them after the election. The opposition knows they can never be the government, they promised macam-macam. They don’t really have commitment.

Like (PAS-led) Kelantan. Last time, they said they want to push for hudud law, what happen to that now? We don’t want to be a government that cheat the people. We want to be a government with integrity.

On the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf)

Hindraf is not something new, it has been moving in Selangor for three, four years. They have the agenda to turn the Malays into their enemy. We see it, it has been there for a long time. They questioned why Islam is higher than other religions when we know Islam is the official religion and it was agreed to during the Independence. They also questioned the bumiputeras’ rights.

Criticisms against his leadership

I already have done my best. If people want to criticise, I can’t say anything. So far, Selangor is doing quite well. We have clear direction. We know what to do for the next five years.

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najib says cannot create non muslim affairs dept

December 17th, 2007
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Hmm…as usual, i'm confused. just because other religions are not the official religion (correct term is "religion of the federation" ?), we can't allocate some resources? Why not for the sake of unity make some changes to the relevant acts and constitutions? i mean if we can bulldoze things like national service, water bill, etc, surely the people's reps can do this as well. we are talking about upholding rukunegara (kepercayaan kepada tuhan – believe in god), maybe that can be the supporting point.

in the end, it is "hendak seribu daya, tak nak seribu dalih – where there is will, there is a way".

Non-Muslim Affairs Dept: Gov't looking into it
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/76159
Yoges Palaniappan | Dec 17, 07 6:50pm

The government will look into the request to set up a Non-Muslim Affairs Department under the Prime Minister's Department. 

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said the PM's Department does not have such a department because other religions are not the official religion of the country.

"We have the Islamic Affairs Department in the PM's Department because Islam is our official religion," he told reporters in the Parliament lobby today.

He was responding to the request by a coalition of Indian NGOs for the government to set up a Non-Muslim Affairs Department to handle sensitive issues such as conversions and temple demolitions.

However, Najib stressed that the government is "very concerned" with the Indian community's plight especially issues pertaining to places of worship.

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