DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang today questioned why Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar have been "strangely quiet" about the seizure of 31 hymn books from a Catholic priest in Johor.

"(They) who would shoot off instant comments on matters under their purview have been strangely quiet on this issue for the past 10 days," Lim said in a statement today.

He also called for the police be sent for "sensitisation" courses in order to respect religious sensitivities.

"The police must  learn a lesson from this deplorable episode and should be extra sensitive of the  rights and sensitivities of a plural society of diverse races, religions, languages and cultures," Lim said.

He urged that the hymn books be returned to the priest, Cyril Mannayagam, who intended to use it for Orang Asli parishioners, immediately.

“Christmas festivities have started and the 31 hymn books unlawfully seized from Cyril should be returned immediately to the Catholic priest for Christmas celebrations by the Orang Asli Christians,” he said.

“Let us all spread Christmas joy instead of Christmas grief,” he added.

He also said that the Tangkak police’s action of investigating the case under Section 298A of the Penal Code, which was struck down as invalid by the Supreme Court in 1998, as adding “insult to injury”.

“(This is) an instance of the police breaking the law when they should be upholding the law,” he added.

“Cyril posed no threat to national security and was not doing anything which could by any stretch of the imagination be regarded as subversive or subterfuge,” he said.