MIC man to hold hunger strike over ROS directive

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk G. Kumaar Aamaan will be holding a hunger strike Thursday to protest the Registrar of Societies  (ROS) directive that his position as MIC secretary-general is invalid.

Before beginning the strike, which will be held in front of the ROS office in Putrajaya, he said he would be handing over a letter to the Home Ministry.

"The letter is addressed to the Home Minister. I am urging him to replace all the officers handling the MIC case.

"I am unhappy with how the investigating officers and the director general are acting in handling this case," he said when contacted Wednesday.

G. Kumaar said he had received the letter from the ROS two days ago, informing him that his position as secretary-general was not valid.

However, he said contents of the letter had immediately been leaked on Whatsapp messages and in some Tamil dailies.

When asked how long this hunger strike would last, he said it would go on until his demands for the ROS officers were replaced.

"Until they change the investigation team, the director general and the relevant officers are transferred out," he said, adding that he would be doing the strike alone.

He also claimed that over 100 police reports had been made by MIC branch and division leaders against the alleged unfairness by the ROS but no action had been taken.

On Dec 5, the ROS had nullified the elections for the party’s three vice-president and 23 central working committee (CWC) posts held during its general assembly in November 2013 and recommended fresh polls within 90 days.

G. Kumaar had claimed that the ROS had been acting unfairly and even threatened to report the ‘real story’ to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Com­mission (MACC) if the RoS officers refused to meet him.

He alleged that he had received information from a “prominent politician” about RoS’ investigation on MIC.

He also said the RoS officer in charge of the investigations had agreed to meet him twice but cancelled at the last minute.

Party president Datuk Seri G. Palanivel had announced G. Kumaar's appointment as secretary general early this month, along with other appointments to key positions in the party.

However, his appointment came under objection  from members of the opposing faction in MIC, who claimed it was against  the party constitution.

According to the party constitution, the secretary general  must be a member of the party's  central working  committee (CWC).

However, as the CWC had been deemed invalid by the ROS, they said that the secretary -general could not be selected from that group.