Non-Muslim houses of worship: No enforcement of S'gor guidelines pending review

The Selangor government has clarified that it has yet to implement or enforce the state’s 2025 guidelines regarding the approval of future applications for non-Muslim places of worship in commercial shop lots.

Instead, the Town and Country Planning Department guidelines will be reviewed by the government in consultation with religious associations, said Special Committee for Non-Islamic Affairs co-chairperson Ng Sze Han last night.

“A meeting will be arranged in early June. No enforcement action will take place while this review is ongoing.

“The state government is dedicated to resolving this administrative and technical alignment through constructive dialogue, ensuring that Selangor remains a progressive, fair, and inclusive state for all,” said Ng, who is also a state exco member.

Yesterday, Petaling Jaya MP Lee Chean Chung voiced concern over two provisions in the guidelines approved by the state exco meeting on Nov 12, 2025, saying they could have far-reaching implications for the practice of religious activities across Selangor.

He noted that Paragraph 6 under “KM: 4-3 Places of Worship Other than Islam” states that “Placement within areas designated as commercial zones is not permitted”.

Paragraph 7 further states that “Conversion of existing buildings into such use is not allowed”.

“It is widely known that, for years, due to the shortage of land gazetted for non-Muslim places of worship purposes, some religious centres have operated in commercial or industrial areas while generally coexisting peacefully with surrounding communities.

“Rather than intensifying efforts to address the long-standing shortage of land for non-Islamic places of worship, why introduce restrictions on arrangements that have largely not posed problems?” Lee said in a statement posted on social media.

Traffic congestion complaints

A spokesperson from the Menteri Besar’s Office reportedly responded to Lee, saying that the guidelines were based on feedback local councils received from residents living near commercial areas.

The spokesperson said new rules aim to improve traffic and parking facilities because commercial areas have limited space and may not accommodate the needs of religious communities, Free Malaysia Today reported.

The rules apply only to new developments and will not affect houses of worship already operating in commercial or other premises.

“Moving forward, each new area, which is developed for residential purposes, will have a gazetted land for both Muslim and non-Muslim houses of worship,” the spokesperson was reported as saying.

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