PAS has moved at lightning speed to ensure the implementation of hudud in Kelantan, by sending a letter to Parliament stating it wants a vote in the House this current session.

The move comes a day after the Kelantan state assembly approved amendments to its Syariah Criminal Code II 1993, which forms the basis for the implementation of hudud in the state.

Further amendments to federal laws are needed to allow for the implementation of hudud in Kelantan, thus bringing Parliament into picture.

The letter from PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang to to Parliamentary Secretary Rosmee Hamzah - which was circulated on the social media today - stated the party's intention to table a Private Member's Bill during the current sitting of Parliament.

This bill is to propose the amendment of the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965, which currently limits punishments imposed by the syariah court to no more than three years imprisonment, a fine of up to RM5,000 and six strokes of rotan for certain offences.

Removing the limits will allow the syariah court to mete out punishments according to Kelantan's hudud legislation, which among others, includes stoning to death and up to 80 lashings.

According to an online Harakahdaily report today, Takiyuddin Hassan - who heads the Kelantan Syariah Criminal Code permanent secretariat - expressed confidence that the Private Member's Bill would be tabled during this parliamentary session.

Gerakan files for review

"We need to give a 14-day notice before we can table the motion. This parliament session will only end on April 9," Takiyuddin is quoted as saying.

Hadi's notice to Rosmee is dated March 18, the same day the hudud amendment bill was tabled in the Kelantan state assembly.

However, other PAS leaders appear in the dark about Hadi's letter, with party secretary-general Mustafa Ali reportedly saying he was unaware while PAS Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad ( right ) yesterday said he expected the bill to be brought before Parliament in May.

Private member's bills are normally queued behind government bills and have not normally seen the light of day. Any such bill can only be tabled with the support of the BN, which commands a simple majority in the House.

Yesterday, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Shahidan Kassim told reporters outisde Parliament that "The programme for this current sitting is full ."

If the Private Member's Bill tabled by PAS is allowed and passed, it will pave way for the implementation of hudud not only in Kelantan but also in Terengganu, which in 2001 introduced similar legislation when PAS ruled the state for one term.

However, hudud is still open to constitutional challenge and Gerakan had since filed for a review of Kelantan's legislation.

'PAS walks the talk'

The passage of the bill in the Kelantan assembly has attracted condemnation from PAS' Pakatan Rakyat partners DAP and PKR, which accused the Islamic party of violating the coalition's common policy framework.

However, newly-minted PAS spiritual leader Haron Din ( left ) is quoted in a Utusan Malaysia report today as saying hudud is more important than the survival of Pakatan Rakyat.

"If PAS hesitates or emphasises more on its allies who are opposing (hudud) or cares too much about Pakatan, to the extent that it will sacrifice its own principles, then PAS will not have tabled the hudud amendments.

"PAS has made clear our determination. We are not just talk. PAS walks the talk and PAS gives more emphasis to Allah's laws than the laws of man," Haron is quoted as saying.