An Islamic group has admonished the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM), saying it had gone overboard with its demand for an apology.

Persatuan Belia Islam Nasional (Pembina) was responding to BSM president Ng Moon Ming, who wants the Selangor religious authorities to apologise for stamping 30 copies of the Bible with a caveat barring their distribution in Selangor.

“BSM has gone overboard because what was done by the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) was to defend the faith of Muslims,” Pembina president Ibrahim Mohd Hasan Al-Hafiz said.

“He (Ng) should be the one who must ask forgiveness from Muslims,” Ibrahim is quoted as saying in a report published on Ismaweb today.

Be firm, menteri besar urged

Ibrahim also urged Selangor Menteri Besar Azmin Ali to be firm in defending the principles and importance of Muslims in the state.

“I urge the Selangor MB to do his duty. He should not keep silent when there are parties who are trying to play with the sensitivities of Muslims,” he said.

The Pembina leader said other Muslim NGOs and organisations should be more forthcoming to defend Islam.

Jais in January this year confiscated copies of the Bible in the Malay and Iban languages, for containing the term Allah, during a raid on BSM in January.

The copies of the holy book were returned last month.

BSM is annoyed that the 30 copies of the Bible were stamped with a caveat before delivery to the Association of Churches Sarawak.