Following the outcry on the slaughtering of cows in schools, ex-mufti says objection to religious practices should apply across the board.
PETALING JAYA: While it is wrong for people to adopt the new practice of slaughtering cows in schools, the same applies to religious devotees who carry idols and smash coconuts in public areas.
Commenting on the outcry following the slaughtering of cows in school compounds during the Hari Raya Aidiladha celebrations, former Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin said the objection to religious practices should be applicable to all.
“Schools are not places for slaughtering of animals and (the practice) may be inappropriate for some students”, the religious scholar acknowledged on his official Facebook page.
“However, in this country, there are a lot more things that are inappropriate, and places are misused.
“Among them, roads are not the place for religious parades like the carrying of idols or smashing of coconuts that will disrupt the use of the road by others or dirty a public place, as practiced by certain religious individuals,” he lamented.
“If you want to object to it (slaughtering of cows in school compounds), then do it across the board.”
It is understood that Mohd Asri was referring to the Hindu festival of Thaipusam and its age old ritual of breaking coconuts before an activity of any magnitude is undertaken.
During Thaipusam, devotees shave their heads and undertake a pilgrimage along a set route while engaging in various acts of devotion, with many resorting to mortification of the flesh by piercing the skin, tongue or cheeks with vel skewers.
Yesterday, MIC deputy president Dr S Subramaniam commented that cow slaughtering is a sensitive issue, thus the sensitivities of other religions must be taken into consideration.
Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo, whose constituency the involved school was situated, has also urged the Education Ministry to explain why the slaughterings were allowed.
On Tuesday, MIC president G Palanivel said cows can be slaughtered in mosques and suraus and other places including religious schools but slaughtering cows in schools could be a worrying problem and disturbing for non-Malay students.
Several Hindu parents have complained about the use of school compounds to slaughter cows in conjunction with Hari Raya Aidiladha celebrations.
It was reported that a primary school in Kuala Lumpur slaughtered a number of cows in its compound during school hours. Similar events were held in schools across the country.
PETALING JAYA: While it is wrong for people to adopt the new practice of slaughtering cows in schools, the same applies to religious devotees who carry idols and smash coconuts in public areas.Commenting on the outcry following the slaughtering of cows in school compounds during the Hari Raya Aidiladha celebrations, former Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin said the objection to religious practices should be applicable to all.
“Schools are not places for slaughtering of animals and (the practice) may be inappropriate for some students”, the religious scholar acknowledged on his official Facebook page.
“However, in this country, there are a lot more things that are inappropriate, and places are misused.
“Among them, roads are not the place for religious parades like the carrying of idols or smashing of coconuts that will disrupt the use of the road by others or dirty a public place, as practiced by certain religious individuals,” he lamented.
“If you want to object to it (slaughtering of cows in school compounds), then do it across the board.”
It is understood that Mohd Asri was referring to the Hindu festival of Thaipusam and its age old ritual of breaking coconuts before an activity of any magnitude is undertaken.
During Thaipusam, devotees shave their heads and undertake a pilgrimage along a set route while engaging in various acts of devotion, with many resorting to mortification of the flesh by piercing the skin, tongue or cheeks with vel skewers.
Yesterday, MIC deputy president Dr S Subramaniam commented that cow slaughtering is a sensitive issue, thus the sensitivities of other religions must be taken into consideration.
Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo, whose constituency the involved school was situated, has also urged the Education Ministry to explain why the slaughterings were allowed.
On Tuesday, MIC president G Palanivel said cows can be slaughtered in mosques and suraus and other places including religious schools but slaughtering cows in schools could be a worrying problem and disturbing for non-Malay students.
Several Hindu parents have complained about the use of school compounds to slaughter cows in conjunction with Hari Raya Aidiladha celebrations.
It was reported that a primary school in Kuala Lumpur slaughtered a number of cows in its compound during school hours. Similar events were held in schools across the country.
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