1,000 people in Kelantan are summoned for Islamic dress code violations

KUALA LUMPUR - The Kota Baru Municipal Council in Kelantan has issued 1,000 summonses since last year against those who expose their “aurat” or who behave indecently in public, an official said yesterday.

The council’s Supervisory Squad operations chief Shaifful Nizam Mohd Mukhtar told local paper Sinar Harian during its “Tutup Aurat” Operation that the move against so-called indecent dressing targeted workers at supermarkets and night markets.

“The Supervisory Squad was set up under the Development Department of MPKB-BRI, not just to focus on workers in supermarket premises who do not cover their ‘aurat’, but also on night market workers,” Shaifful Nizam was quoted saying, using the initials for the Kota Baru Municipal Council Islamic City.

The maximum compound for indecent dressing or behaviour is RM500, Shaifful Nizam reportedly said.

“Aurat” in Malay refers to “intimate body parts” that Muslims must cover with clothing.

Kelantan’s neighbouring state Terengganu has also recently cracked down on purported indecent dressing among Muslim women, a crime under Islamic state law that is punishable with a fine of not more than RM1,000, a maximum six-year jail term, or both.