A defiant Akmal claimed calls to boycott KK Mart stores had nothing to do with gaining political mileage, but that it was to defend Islam against insult.

“No one will be able to stop me even if they try,” he told reporters at the Simpang Tiga mosque here.

Akmal said he was certain that the wing was on “the right track”.

Prior to Akmal’s statement, deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had said that the matter should be put to rest after the company that operated the stores had apologised and it was found that the supplier from mainland China was at fault.

“This matter should be settled, without prolonging the issue,” Zahid, who is also Umno president, said.

Akmal said he had met Zahid earlier and he was not censured over his stand on the matter, adding that many Umno Supreme Council members had backed him.

He again reiterated that KK Mart’s apology was insufficient, saying no party should get away with “a single apology” for insulting religion.

Akmal said it was time to teach those who insulted Islam a lesson, including KK Mart, and he promised a “boycott until the end”.

He also took aim at DAP, accusing the party of racialising the issue when the wing was hitting out at the retailer.

Akmal said even if the retailer was a Muslim, he would have reacted the same way. He was responding to DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook’s question whether he would have acted differently if the retail stores were owned by Muslims.

The controversy arose after photographs of the socks, sold at KK Mart’s Bandar Sunway store, appeared on social media last Wednesday, earning the ire of the Muslim community and sparking calls for a boycott by Umno Youth.

On Saturday, the company apologised and expressed regret over the incident, although Umno Youth later said the apology was inadequate and demanded KK Mart display apology banners at all of its 881 stores nationwide.

The vendor of the convenience store chain, meanwhile, said it was considering legal action for negligence against its supplier in China.