KUALA TERENGGANU: The Terengganu Syariah Court of Appeal has confirmed the public caning sentence for a 42-year-old man for serial khalwat will take place on Dec 27.
Mohd Affendi Awang will undergo the sentence of six strokes of the rotan at the Al-Muktafi Billah Shah mosque in Kuala Terengganu.
State Information, Da'wah, and Syariah Empowerment Committee chairman Dr Muhammad Khalil Abdul Hadi said the court upheld the original sentence after reviewing a last-minute appeal filed on Dec 3.
The court unanimously maintained the punishment of six cane strokes and an RM4,000 fine, in default, six months in jail.
Senior Syariah Court judge Kamalruazmi Ismail initially issued the sentence on Nov 20, to be carried out by Dec 6, but this was postponed due to the review application.
The Syariah Court of Appeal, on Dec 11, found the application compliant with Section 18 of the Terengganu Syariah Court Enactment 2001.
Affendi became the first individual in Terengganu to receive such a sentence after pleading guilty to repeated khalwat (close proximity) offences under the Syariah Criminal Offenses (Takzir) Enactment.