PETALING JAYA: Landowners who suspect that a house of worship has been built without approval on their land should immediately lodge a police report, says Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari (pic).
The Selangor Menteri Besar said that doing so would enable the police to begin investigations and, if an offence is proven, expedite prosecution against the trespassers who built the house of worship.
“The police can then initiate prosecution proceedings against the perpetrators for the offence of trespassing.
“The police will then issue a notice to the trespassers and formally inform the local district office,” he said in a statement on Thursday (Feb 12).
To help mediate between landowners and the management of unapproved houses of worship, he said that district security committees, chaired by the local district officer, have also been activated in all districts in Selangor.
“These committees will call all parties involved — including the police and local authorities — to help seek a reasonable resolution between the landowners and the management of the houses of worship.
“This approach ensures that the entire process involves the relevant authorities and helps prevent any incident that could potentially trigger unrest.
“If this process does not yield results, the committee will then advise the landowner to proceed with court action and other legal measures,” Amirudin added.
He said this move is intended to assist landowners, as the existing process requires them to retain a lawyer to obtain a court order before any eviction or demolition of unapproved houses of worship on their land can proceed.
Regarding unapproved houses of worship built on state land, Amirudin said the state government's current conflict-resolution procedures will be strengthened.
“This includes immediate action at the local authority level and the enhancement of clearer standard operating procedures (SOP) for the state’s Special Committee on Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Sikh and Taoist (Limas).”
