PAS SAID NO TO ISLAMIC STATE

PAS had said no to Islamic States and replacing as the welfare state. It even breaks the own taboo by fielding the first non-Muslim candidate. The party’s manifesto themed “Trustworthy, just and clean Government: A nation of care and opportunity” reflected that the party had sideline the Islamic state.

KUMUTHA Rahman, the 29-year-old law graduate, had been named as the first non-Muslim candidate fielded by PAS headquarters in Batu Pahat. She is seen with Johor Pas commissioner Mahfodz Mohamed.

She is contesting the Tiram state seat But Pas is fielding her under the Parti Keadilan Rakyat symbol based on the electoral pact the two parties have entered into.

She had broken the conservative Islamic party's 61-year-old tradition of only fielding Muslims as candidates.

Pas will contest 34 state seats and nine parliamentary seats in Johore. The party had lost in all 37 state seats and 11 parliamentary constituencies it contested in the last general election. This time around, fresh faces made-up one-third of the candidates and none of the Pas Women’s wing leaders.

The Tiram constituency is a Barisan Nasional stronghold. In the 2004 election, BN's Maulizan Bujang beat Pas' Roslani Sharif, by a margin of 15,595 votes and the coalition us expected to repeat the feat. The Indian vote, which comprises 14.39 per cent of that area’s voters