SHAH ALAM, Aug 28 — Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah has called on states that have not joined the National Council for Islamic Religious Affairs (MKI) to respond to the invitation and officially become members of the council’s “musyawarah” (deliberation) platform.

Sultan Sharafuddin, who is also MKI chairman, said that the council is an institution that was approved by the Conference of Rulers.

“The primary members of MKI are representatives from states that have a significant role in coordinating Islamic affairs,” said the Ruler at the 70th MKI meeting held today at Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Mosque, here.

Also present was Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who is the council’s deputy chairman.

Although there have been achievements from MKI discussions, there are still unresolved issues that demand the participants to actively engage in producing valuable insights and solutions, Sultan Sharafuddin added.

In another development, the Selangor Ruler noted that certain groups are openly sharing their views related to the disagreements on various sensitive matters that should be addressed by the MKI. These include the method of determining the start of Ramadan and the sighting of the Syawal moon.

“I am disappointed by this situation because even though they state their intention is to strengthen their arguments, why does it create doubt about the expertise of knowledgeable muftis in astronomy and lead to decisions that do not align with what has been agreed upon?

“This will certainly cause confusion among Muslims and could eventually lead to division,” he said.

Therefore, Sultan Sharafuddin advised that to prevent confusion in the future, the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim) should establish a clear decision concerning the approach to determine the beginning of Ramadan and verify the sighting of the Syawal moon using “ru’yah” (vision) and “hisab” (calculation).

Sultan Sharafuddin also suggested that Jakim propose a comprehensive policy and procedure for registering private tahfiz institutions, to be implemented in every state. — Bernama