Continue demolishing temples and lose trust of Indians, warns deputy minister Waytha

Putrajaya has been warned by a deputy minister that it would lose the trust of the Indian community if it failed to keep its election pledge not to demolish Hindu temples without first consulting the Hindu Rights Action Force, or Hindraf.

P. Waytha Moorthy, the Hindraf chief who was appointed deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Department following an agreement between his group and Barisan Nasional, urged Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Mansor to seriously consider the impact on the Indian community.

Waytha referred to a recent statement by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall reasserting its intention to continue demolishing or relocating illegal temples.

"This statement is without basis as the government is aware that those temples are neither squatting nor are they illegal as they had pre-existed within the enclave of Indian communities," said Waytha.

"The failure of the government to draw up clear policies for those temples does not mean they are illegal structures. They have existed before independence."

He said research by Hindraf found that between 2006 and 2007, 79 temples, including 15 in the Klang Valley, were demolished.

Waytha also reminded Putrajaya of a key element in the understanding reached with Hindraf, which is to ensure Hindu temples would not be demolished arbitrarily without first consulting the group.

"Although BN had made a firm commitment on this issue, the recent demolition of a temple in Jalan P. Ramlee and the statements that followed will cause unwarranted anguish and anxiety among the Indian community," he warned, referring to the demolition of the 101-year-old Sri Muneswarar temple in central Kuala Lumpur.

Saying some 20 temples in the Klang Valley faced demolition, Waytha said Putrajaya should not to further anger the Hindu community by demolishing them.

He said Tengku Adnan should call a meeting with Hindraf to find a permanent solution to the problem of temples built illegally on government land.

Waytha was previously criticised for questioning the police's shooting of five Indian youths in Penang several months ago.

This prompted several of his cabinet colleagues, including Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, to tell him to toe Putrajaya's policies.