SHAH ALAM, Oct 12 — PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat appeared to suggest today that Selangor lead the way in implementing Syariah laws, insisting the state’s success would shut its critics up.

The former Kelantan Mentri Besar said the issue had been exploited by PAS’s political rivals to cast doubt over the party’s commitment to Islam ahead of the May 5 general election, but they were silenced when Pakatan Rakyat (PR) still retained control over Selangor.

“They will be silenced again with the implementation of Syariah laws, if Selangor succeeds in doing so.

“Selangor has a lot of talent, a lot of experts live here, a lot of universities, if it implements the Syariah law, god willing it will succeed,” he said during the closing speech of the seminar on implementing Syariah laws in Malaysia at the University of Selangor (UniSel).

The 82-year-old also said that if one lives by principles enshrined in the Syariah laws, this would act as the individual’s passport to the after-life.

Nik Aziz’s remarks today comes just hours after PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang repeated the same push for the implementation of Islamic laws in Malaysia, a remark likely to please the party’s conservatives - the faction that is expected to return to the fore when internal polls are held this November.

At the same function, the Islamist party leader had insisted that the push had always been a part of the Islamist party’s agenda, and has “not been a problem” among its PR allies, including the non-Muslims.

The opposition party however suffered losses due to the contentious issue, and picked up just 21 federal seats or seven fewer than Election 2008.

Among PAS casualties in the 13th general election were several of its progressive leaders, including deputy president Mohamad Sabu, who lost the Pendang race in his home state of Kedah, and vice-president Salahuddin Ayub who was defeated in Pengerang, Johor.

Party sources have said the losses in Election 2013 may propel the ulama back into the limelight, following their rout in the previous party polls, a development they said could jeopardise the PAS continued relations with its allies in PR.