(NST) - PAS Youth chief Nasrudin Hassan Tantawi yesterday made an about-turn, claiming that he had never denied what he said about DAP chairman Karpal Singh and hudud at a recent debate.
He admitted saying Karpal had said during a Pakatan Rakyat convention in Penang, "after he befriended Pas", that the issue of hudud could be discussed again.
"It is true I said that. Refer to my speech in the debate," he said, claiming that he had never denied saying it.
In a text message on Friday, Nasrudin was asked whether it was true that he had said Karpal was willing to discuss hudud during the debate, to which his reply was "tidak ada" (I did not).
However, a MobTV.my video recording of the debate on Thursday, titled "PRU13: Orang Muda Pilih Siapa", between the Pas Youth leader and Umno Working Committee Secretariat of Young Ulama chairman Fathul Bari Mat Jahaya, proved otherwise.
In the recording, Nasrudin was shown to have said: "I would like to ask my friend Fathul Bari to update me about Karpal Singh... he (Fathul) said that Karpal Singh had said, '...over my dead body' when the idea to implement hudud came about 10 years ago.
"However, like Fathul said, it was 10 years ago. Now, after a recent Pakatan Rakyat convention held in Penang, Karpal said that after he had befriended Pas, the issue of hudud can be discussed again.
"This means that there is some sort of understanding (between Pas and DAP) about the law."
In an immediate reaction to Nasrudin admitting what he had said, Karpal continued his stand against hudud.
He said what had been brought up at the Pakatan convention was the issue of Islamic states, not hudud.
"This (what Nasrudin said about him) is incorrect. What I said at the Pakatan convention several years ago was that this issue must be resolved.
"Resolving an issue does not mean that I am agreeing to (hudud). It means we have to find ways to get over this problem."
As far as DAP was concerned, he added, the party's stand was clear.
Karpal has always been vocal about his stand against the implementation of hudud in Malaysia, which is a key tenet of Pas ideology.
