Ramasamy, speaking to FMT, said while he was not entirely sure as to the reason behind the attack, the timing of the incident made him believe that his remarks on Zakir may have infuriated some individuals.

The Prai assemblyman had, on Sunday, described Zakir as “satan” on his Facebook account, but deleted the word from his online posting following a backlash.

Recounting the incident, which occurred at 3am today, Ramasamy said his service centre manager, R Subramaniam, who was sleeping there, woke up with a jolt upon hearing a loud noise coming from the lower level of the two-storey centre.

“He went outside and saw smoke and scorch marks on the centre’s iron shutters. He immediately notified one of my assistants who lodged a report at the Chai Leng Park police station.

“I was informed of it at 6am and then I came over. However, the damage was just minimal.

“I don’t know the motive behind the attack, but I believe it may be because of what I had said about Zakir,” he told FMT today.

Ramasamy added that there was a CCTV camera near the centre and the police were currently looking at the footage.

“I hope they (the police) will be able to identify the person responsible for the attack.”

Ramasamy had apologised for calling Zakir “satan” while pointing out the fact that the Mumbai-born preacher had been giving hate speeches on other religions.

In a statement issued today, Ramasamy said while he realised his mistake and removed the word, his action came a little too late as the posting had quickly gone viral.