LETTER | Despite appeals to the PAS-led government in Kedah, the Alor Setar City Council still went ahead and demolished the Sre Madura Veeran Hindu temple on the morning of July 8, 2020.

This is the second Hindu temple to be demolished under the PN government within a matter of few months.

The first Hindu temple to be demolished was the Sri Maha Mariamman temple in Kamunting, Taiping, in late March 2020.

A few weeks ago, this temple in Alor Setar with a history of more than one hundred years was given notice for eviction.

However, the temple committee asked for an alternative site to relocate the temple.

Since this was not forthcoming, preparations were made to seek a court order to prevent the temple from being demolished.

Sensing that the temple committee might seek legal recourse, the Alor Setar City Council took the preemptive step of demolishing the temple at around 2 am Thursday morning.

Under normal circumstances, enforcement action by government agencies are done in day-light or during office hours and certainly not in the early hours of the morning.

This act in itself indicates that the act of demolishing the temple in Alor Setar was based on religious and extremist sentiments.

The coming to power of the PAS-led government in Kedah does not portend well for the development of harmonious relationships between different racial and religious communities in Kedah.

The writer is Penang deputy chief minister (II).

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.