KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 13 — PAS has demanded Attorney General (AG) Tommy Thomas today explain why the charges against lawyer and human rights activist Siti Kasim for displaying a rude gesture at a forum in 2016 have been dropped.

Its information chief Nasrudin Hassan said there were three similar cases where members of the public had displayed rude gestures, which resulted in fines and imprisonment for those involved.

"Yet the case of Siti Kasim displaying her middle finger to audience members during a forum on amending Act 355, which subsequently went viral on social media appears to not be discussed in court nor charged by the attorney general,” he said in a statement.

Nasrudin said this has allegedly resulted in a negative public perception towards the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC).

"The people are of the opinion that the attorney general is behaving selectively on this case, in light of the personal connection between him and the accused.

"A reasonable explanation should be forthcoming as to why the case was dropped,” he said.

On Monday, Siti said in a Facebook post that her case, where she was to be charged under Section 509 of the Penal Code for outraging modesty, had been referred to the AGC by an unnamed police inspector in Subang Jaya.

The AGC subsequently decided not to pursue any further action against her.