The court also ordered Syed Shah Iqmal to be given three strokes of the rotan, Sinar Harian reported.

He will serve his sentence from today.

Earlier, deputy public prosecutor Raja Zaizul Faridah Raja Zaharudin asked the court to impose a severe sentence as a lesson for the accused, taking into account the public interest and the increasing prevalence of rape crimes.

She said that based on the accused’s position and the testimonies of witnesses, Syed Shah Iqmal is a well-known preacher and a motivator who is highly regarded.

“But he used his position to take advantage of the victim,” she said.

Syed Shah Iqmal’s lawyer, Syed Amirul Syed Edros, requested a stay of execution of the sentence as the offence was his client’s first.

“If my client is imprisoned, it will ruin his life, as his wife and child need him,” he said.

Raja Zaizul told the court that there was no special consideration to stay the execution of the sentence, given the proven criminal offence.

Judge Norazlin Othman dismissed the application, saying there were no special circumstances that would warrant the stay.

In her judgment, Norazlin said the court found the defence by Syed Shah Iqmal to be “a mere denial and an afterthought” .

She said the court also found that his testimony was insufficient to refute the prosecution’s case that the rape indeed occurred.

Norazlin said the prosecution had succeeded in proving that Syed Shah Iqmal invited the victim out and brought her to his home.

“The prosecution also demonstrated that the victim was vulnerable due to suffering from depression, which rendered her unable to make decisions and resist the accused,” she said.

When it came to sentencing, Norazlin said, the court took into account the trauma suffered by the victim, who not only had to gather the courage to file a police report but also had to endure a lengthy legal process.

Following the sentence, Syed Shah Iqmal, 29, was seen crying, before hugging his wife, who had just given birth to their first child.

In December 2020, Syed Shah Iqmal claimed trial to a charge of raping the woman at a condominium in I-City, Seksyen 7, Shah Alam on Sept 11, 2019.

In April last year, the Shah Alam sessions court acquitted and freed him after the judge ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove a prima facie case against him.

Following an appeal by the prosecution, the High Court ordered Syed Shah Iqmal to enter his defence.