-Senator Dr. S. Ramakrishnan, June 25, 2012.

PAS vice president Salahuddin Ayub has denied uttering derogatory words on Thaipusam festival or Hindu religion which MIC youth took offence with. He had said that mass gathering can be held peacefully without any tear gas to obtain crowd control like Baling demonstration, Thaipusam festival, Maulidur rasul celebration just to name a few. But our friends from MIC youth got so upset that they are demanding apology from Salahuddin Ayub for belittling the religious practice of another religion. Salahuddin had described Thaipusam festival where the devotee walk semi consciously. Maybe what he meant was kavadi carriers walk in trance.

Salahudin Ayub met some pakatan Rakyat Indian MPs and explained what he said and meant in Parliament today. I was there too and we felt nothing wrong with what he has said. It is MIC youth which has lost its purpose and relevance trying to redeem itself by politicizing this issue.     

But what surprises me is that UMNO has uttered so many derogatory terms many times and never once MIC youth got upset. UMNO leaders had deliberately used words to belittle and slur Indians like Pendatang, pariah, beggars, monkey (berok), “inside my back side” on Indians with the intention to hurt us. But MIC youth treat them like masters and obediently follow like puppy or lapdog. They never felt any hurt.

 A few teachers in some schools have used the word pariah, dog and Indians were told to go back to India. MIC youth never protested. But when Salahuddin Ayub who is PAS Member of Parliament for kubang kerian included Thaipusam festival along with other religious celebrations to say that crowd can be controlled without tear gas and water cannon, MIC got so upset.

UMNO has denied Malaysian Indians rights and many of our fellow brethren are stateless. MIC youth is not offended or concerned about. They have learnt to accept our status as the 3rd class after the illegal immigrants from Indonesia or Bangladesh.

When PKR leaders went to PM office to protest the presence of hundreds of thousands stateless Indians, it was MIC youth that brought gangsters to stop the notice being served to PM office.       

 MIC and its youth wing have long ago become irrelevant to the rights struggle of Malaysian Indians. They are now the UMNO apologist and the Indian community has forsaken them for good. In fact in many areas the UMNO/MCA elected representative use PPP local branches to have program for Indians. MIC is full of criminals and self centered individuals who are all concerned about what they can get.

Indians don’t have any trust (nambikai) on MIC leaders but PM who is trying hard to win the Indian community trust (nambikai) is surrounded by them. Malaysian Indians must not allow race based parties to resonate again to discriminate us. GE 13 must be turning point for Malaysian Indians. BN/MIC is history, PR is the present. Let’s change. It’s now or never.