KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 27 — The federal police have taken the statement of DAP parliamentarian Howard Lee Chuan How for allegedly insulting Islam after he had quoted a verse from the Quran in a video posted on social media recently.
Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department (CID) director Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain said the recorded oral statement was taken from Lee in Ipoh, Perak at 3pm yesterday.
He said the police had taken Lee’s statement following allegations that the Ipoh Timur MP had insulted Islam by interpreting a verse from the Quran.
“The case will be investigated by Bukit Aman CID Prosecution and Law Division’s (D5) Classified Crime Investigation Unit under Section 505(C) of the Penal Code and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.
“The investigation papers will then be referred to the Attorney-General (AG) in line with Article 145 (3) of the Federal Constitution,” he said in a statement last night.
Section 505(C) of the Penal Code deals with intent to incite or which is likely to incite any class or community of persons to commit any offence against any other class or community of persons. Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 touches on sharing offensive and menacing content.
Lee, a former Pakatan Harapan (PH) youth leader, had recently come under criticism after uploading a TikTok video in which he allegedly cited verse 59 of Surah an-Nisa of the Quran.
Mohd Shuhaily urged the public not to speculate about the case as the police are still investigating the matter.
He also called on the public to be responsible social media users.
“Refrain from making statements that threaten the nation’s harmony and unity, especially on 3R (race, religion and royalty) issues,” he said.
Earlier yesterday, Lee publicly apologised for quoting a verse from the Quran in a video posted on social media recently.
He made the apology during a press conference held at the Ipoh Timur MP’s service centre in Ipoh, Perak.
Lee explained that he had no intention of touching the sensitivities of the Muslim community.
“I tender an open apology to all Muslims regarding this issue, but I’d like to stress that I had referred to a Muslim scholar before I quoted the verse of the Quran.
“There is no question of blindly interpreting (the verse), but I apologise if my actions have offended Muslims in the country,” he said in the press conference.
Last Friday, Mohd Shuhaily was reported to have said that Bukit Aman’s Classified Crime Investigation Unit would record Lee’s statement regarding the incident.
Perak Police chief Datuk Seri Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri previously said the first report on the case was lodged at the Jalan Tun Razak police station in Kuala Lumpur, while the non-governmental organisation Jalinan Bersatu Sahabat (Jabat) Perak also filed a report last Thursday.
