Manama: A controversial Friday sermon preacher has been suspended by the religious authorities after he was accused of fomenting sectarian divisions.

Jassem Al Saeedi, an independent MP at the lower house and a regular preacher at Sabeeka Mosque in Eisa Town, 15 kilometres south of Manama, the capital, was probed by the Sunni Endowments, the body overlooking Friday sermons, after he was reported to have insulted Shiite beliefs.

"The decision to suspend Al Saeedi from delivering sermons was taken by the justice and Islamic affairs minister following the probe into what he said at the mosque on Friday," sources told Gulf News.

Al Saeedi, an independent Salafi who was elected to the lower house in 2002 and re-elected in 2006, defended his stance, saying that he did not attack the Shiite sect and challenged his detractors to produce the script of the sermon. However, he has apparently accepted the suspension and said that "the Sunni Endowments had the right to assess the merits of the sermons and to make the right decisions."

Shiite activists have been complaining about Al Saeedi, arguing that he repeatedly attacked their beliefs and that his stances inside the parliament and outside largely contributed to sectarian standoffs.

However, his sermon on Friday was particularly criticized for its aggressive tenor, and the tense situation was compounded after the government on Friday prevented a Shiite leader from addressing worshippers in Al Sadiq Mosque, claiming that he was not officially registered to deliver sermons.

Fellow MP Adel Al Mouawda, representing Al Asala, the Salafi bloc, also criticized Al Saeedi, saying that his sermon was unacceptable.

"All people, Sunnis and Shiites, reject such speeches. We do not accept what Al Saeedi said. We do know that he cannot control himself at times, but this is not an excuse since whoever talks in public and address public issues should be able to appreciate the significance and potency of every word he utters and should be wise in his statements," he said. "Bahrain needs people to help in the nation-building process, and not in destroying the social peace that has been achieved," said Al Mouawda, whose cordial relations with both Sunnis and Shiites, have made him one of the most moderate MPs in the lower house.