Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) is bewildered how defending Islam can earn the movement a racist label.

Its president Abdullah Zaik Abdul Rahman was responding to the statement by PAS leader Mujahid Rawa in an interview with Malaysiakini .

Abdullah Zaik said Mujahid failed to look at the issue from a proper Islamic standpoint.

"We are only fighting for Islam and defending the country’s Islamic identity," he told Malaysiakini .

“And because of that, we are labelled as racists.”

Mujahid said Isma was more “dangerous and racist” than Malay supremacist group Perkasa because Isma uses religion to bolster its racism.

However, Abdullah Zaik countered that Mujahid ( right ) was talking without substance as he had failed to back up his claim with any argument on politics or Islam.

The Isma chief was also unfazed by Mujahid’s labelling of his organisation, saying that the Parit Buntar MP was merely repeating accusations “like a parrot”.

“He is repeating the accusations made by the liberals against the Islamists who are defending the country’s Islamic identity.

“Does he (Mujahid) view it as harmony when we have to disregard our identity in the process of liberalisation?

“Does he think that is the viewpoint of Islam? If he does, then he has deviated far from the viewpoint of Islam," Abdulla Zaik added.