Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad is caught in a quandary as he is unable to secure proof of a "criminal" past which makes him unsuitable to give sermons.

khalid samad 160609 03 Khalid ( right ) has been denied tauliah (permission) to perform kuliah (religious classes) by the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) ostensibly because of this "criminal record".

Jais had given Khalid the green light under the D1 category (to teach or preach) and D2 (teaching the fardhu ain or basic religious classes), in a letter dated July 10, 2008.

This was withdrawn by Jais in another letter dated Oct 28, 2008 to Khalid with the so-called "police record" attached to it.

At a press conference in Shah Alam today, Khalid said that he sought clarification from the police. A letter from the Selangor police dated Oct 27, 2009 did not shed any light on the matter.

"I urge them (the police) to clarify what, if any, records they have of me. I was made to understand they do not release personal records, even to the person with a record," he said.

The police instead asked Khalid to direct further enquiries to Jais.

"This is strange. Why should Jais have my records? If I purportedly have a criminal record, I should ask the police," he said.

Move motivated by politics

Khalid also accused Jais' of making a sudden 'U-turn' motivated by politics.

"It is really surprising as, Jais had (at one point) recognised my ability to teach religion," he said, adding that he had passed Jais' qualification process for him to conduct lectures.

NONE Khalid said the teachings of Islam by PAS politicians cannot be differentiated from the religious lecturers approved by Jais.

"People like Tok Guru Nik Aziz (Nik Mat, Kelantan menteri besar) are involved in politics as PAS leaders, but these things should not be taken into consideration.

"I believe that they (Jais) know that when it comes to religious teachings, the issue of PAS and Umno does not arise. It only happens on the ceramah platform," he said.

He urged Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim to study the approval process for religious teachers during the next state cabinet meeting.

It is understood that Khalid has delivered Friday sermons in about 20 mosques and surau in the Shah Alam vicinity after being elected as parliamentarian in March last year.

Khalid's revelation came hot in the heels of the arrest of former Perlis mufti by Jais on Sunday night for delivering religious talks without authorisation.