Mufti: Many new converts want out of Islam

Many new converts to Islam in the country have subsequently applied to renounce the religion, lamented Selangor mufti Tamyes Abdul Wahid.

“A majority of them (who sought to renounce Islam) are those who have just converted to Islam,” said Tamyes when asked about the numbers of people seeking to convert out of the religion in the state.

However, Tamyes, who was contacted by Malaysiakini yesterday, said he did not have exact figures on such cases.

His revelation comes after Islamic Affairs Minister Jamil Khir Baharom (left) said in reply to a written question in Parliament that the Syariah Court received 686 applications to renounce Islam between 2000 and 2010.

The minister, subsequently through national news agency Bernama, denied the Malaysiakini report, which was incidentally based on his written parliamentary reply.

According to Jamil Khir's parliamentary reply, 168 of the said applications had been approved.

However, Bernama reported the minister saying that the Syariah Court had not approved a single such case to date.

'Many were Hindus'

Tamyes said he was concerned with the increase in the number of applications for 'murtad' (apostasy).

“I hope those who wish to convert out of Islam will clarify their true intentions,” he said.

Meanwhile, an officer with the Selangor Mufti Department, M Daruddin Taib, said many of the murtad cases in Selangor involved those who were Hindus.

“The Mufti Department has a panel of former Hindus who are now Muslims (to handle cases involving such converts). I myself cannot speak Tamil,” he said.

Daruddin added that he also encountered numerous cases from a variety of backgrounds.

“Some were born and raised in non-Muslim families,” he explained.

He added that there were those who had converted to marry Muslims, but wanted to revert to their original religions when their marriages ended.

Tamyes (left) said it was everyone's duty to address the issue of murtad, and not just that of the authorities.

He also reminded those who wished to convert to Islam to do so only with genuine intention in order to avoid complications later.

“They have to be committed (to becoming a Muslim),” he added.