DAP chairperson Karpal Singh has urged PAS spiritual leader Nik Aziz Nik Mat to take heed of his party's resolve to work towards a welfare state, as decided during the PAS muktamar (general assembly) in June.

Karpal said that Nik Aziz was being unnecessarily provocative by restating PAS' intention of establishing an Islamic state and implementing hudud law.

"It is difficult to understand why Nik Aziz has, in such a short period of time, forgotten that resolution. He should not take leave of his senses," Karpal said in a statement today.

He said that it was difficult to comprehend why Nik Aziz would do so as it would provide cannon fodder for the BN, with the general election being around the corner.

" NONE I would have thought the issue relating to Islamic state had been laid to rest, irrevocably, with the resolution adopted by the PAS muktamar held this year," Karpal added.

Karpal ( right ) has on numerous occasions before crossed swords with Nik Aziz over PAS' hudud law intentions and the establishment of an Islamic state.

DAP had pulled out of an alliance with PAS over overt attempts by the latter to pursue its Islamic state agenda.

Short of threatening yet another pullout, Karpal said the DAP would not detract from its opposition to the establishment of an Islamic state.

"I have said it many a time, and now repeat, that provisions in the Federal Constitution militate against the country being an Islamic state," he said.

Karpal finds Soi Lek amusing

Referring to a Federal Court judgment in 1998, Karpal said the five-member bench had ruled that the country was governed by secular laws and two former prime ministers, Tunku Abdul Rahman and Hussein Onn, had publicly stated that the country was not an Islamic state.

Training his guns on MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek, Karpal described the former's threats of severing ties with Umno, should the latter pursue an Islamic state, as "amusing".

"It is surprising that when Dr Mahathir Mohamad, as prime minister, in 2001 publicly proclaimed that the country was already an Islamic state, there was not even a whimper from the MCA or any other non-Muslim party in the BN against the stand.

"It is idle for Chua to flex his muscles now by stating that the MCA will leave BN if Umno were to implement hudud law," said Karpal.

Both MCA and Gerakan have threatened to sever ties with Umno should the latter push for the implementation of hudud laws.

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