Several Umno leaders are said to have met ex-Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin as part of efforts to woo the popular religious scholar to join the party.

According to sources close to Asri ( above ), a number of meetings have been held between the Penang-born university lecturer and several senior Umno leaders.

“Additional meetings will be held soon,” said one source familiar with the discussions.

Last Saturday, Umno Online reported Asri as being among 100 religious scholars who will be joining Umno this Friday.

Citing Umno secretary Abdul Rauf Yusof, Asri was said to be among those to join the Bukit Bintang Umno division, which Abdul Rauf heads.

In a posting on his blog shortly after the Umno Online report was published, however, Asri said he has yet to decide on joining any political party.

While some of Asri’s supporters are said to back his entry into Umno and may follow him into the party, severe criticisms have also been levelled against him by his other supporters over the issue.

Should the rumours prove true and Asri becomes an Umno member, it would adversely affect the opposition, given talk that Pakatan Rakyat had also been trying to woo the religious scholar.

While close to former Perlis menteri besar Shahidan Kassim, Asri also has a good rapport with many opposition figures.

shahidan group at putrajaya 140308 shahidan kassim When contacted, Shahidan ( left ) said Asri’s position would be unchanged even if he were to join Umno.

“To me, whether he joins politics or not, does not pose any problems,” the former MB told Malaysiakini .

“But for other religious scholars, it is better to join Umno in order to consolidate, strengthen and empower the religion (in Umno).”

Shahidan also revealed that he expects Asri to make his decision known within “the next two days.”

Asked about the other ‘ulama’ said to on the verge of joining Umno, Shahidan said they were from the “ulama tulen” (genuine ulama) who had not previously been attached to any political party.

“They are not the type of religious scholars who use religion for livelihood or politicise matters for personal benefit,” said Shahidan.