The public must understand the historical context behind the old Hindu temples that many denounce as “illegal”.
In an interview with Malaysiakini, former Malaysian Hindu Sangam (MHS) president A Vaithilingam said the temples were borne out of fear.
Speaking on the beginnings of the Indian community in Malaysia, the 90-year-old said estate workers were brought into Malaya by British colonisers through what Vaithilingam termed as a “deception”.
“No one was willing to go to the jungle, clear the jungle, make way for the plantations, for the roads, for the railways, for the rivers to be made into canals so that land could be developed.
“They (the British) had brought workers who were promised that they were coming to a dreamland here. But they were the indentured workers who were brought with hardly any education from India,” he said.
Living in squalor where they shared pit toilets, the Indian community dealt with their fear through spirituality.
“These workers were allowed to build their own little temples. And the main deity was normally based on (the concept of) motherhood,” he said.
An example he cited was the Dewi Sri Pathrakaliamman Temple, which recently came under the spotlight over its controversial relocation to make way for a mosque.
In an earlier interview with Malaysiakini, Malaysia Council of Hindu Temples and Hindu Associations (Mahima) president N Sivakumar had provided a similar explanation.
Sivakumar had said the temples were previously hidden by dense jungles but are now exposed to the public due to deforestation and development.
In those days, he said, the lands were controlled by the British administration, and it was not obvious who devotees should apply to for a house of worship.
‘Ex-PM met with Indian groups, resolved matter’
Speaking on this snarl of bureaucracy created by the European colonisers, Vaithilingam said former prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had seemingly resolved the issue.
“In December 2006, he called a meeting of all Indian organisations and had a discussion at the prime minister’s office. This included Indian organisations, religious as well as non-religious,” Vaithilingam said.
“His decision was that from now onwards, all temples which are in existence can continue.
“But if (there is to be) any demolition, it has to be settled through negotiation or by any court order.
“But from now onwards, he also said, any new temples in a new place built by any religion must have approval from the land office. That means they must have their own land.”
This had occurred during his tenure as the MHS president.
The relocation of the Dewi Sri Pathrakaliamman Temple sparked polarised reactions, with discussions online focusing on the legal status of Hindu temples. A Facebook group was also created by the public to monitor and report on such cases. - Mkini
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