PETALING JAYA: Former MIC vice-president C Sivaraj, who confirmed that he has been removed from the party’s central working committee, said he was not given any reason for the action against him by the party president.
“Yes, I was removed and I know it’s the prerogative of the party president. But I was not given any reason for removal, which is the norm.”
On whether he will appeal against his removal by MIC president SA Vigneswaran, the senator said he would not do so as he did not know why the action was taken in the first place.
Sivaraj, who was appointed to the CWC by Vigneswaran after he had lost the vice-presidency in the 2021 party election, said the party had been rejected totally by the people.
“Thus, it’s our duty to find a way to regain that support and not see everyone as a threat. MIC has an image issue now,” he added.
According to party sources, a rumour was circulating that Sivaraj was eyeing the top post in the party at the party election due next year. They said he was seen as a contender with strong credentials.
One source said although he was eligible to contest by virtue of being a past vice-president, clipping his wings now would effectively make it harder for him to make inroads into the president’s support at the grassroots.
“Besides that, he is known to be an ‘Umno and Pakatan Harapan’ boy and he was not consulting the party leadership before meeting ministers.
“The last straw was when he met youth and sports minister Hannah Yeoh in March to send in an appeal to include two Indian-based sports, namely kabaddi and silambam, in the Sukma Games in 2024.
“He wrote on his Facebook page yesterday that the Sukma main committee meeting had approved the inclusion of the events and congratulated the minister,” the source said, adding that this could have peeved the party chief.
In the 14th general election, Sivaraj won the Cameron Highlands parliamentary seat with a 597-vote majority. However, his victory was invalidated by a court in 2018, citing evidence of corrupt practices during the polls.
Sivaraj was then slated to contest in the Padang Serai seat in last year’s general election, but the election for the seat was postponed after the PH candidate, M Karupaiya, died before the polls were held.
With PH and Barisan Nasional becoming partners in the unity government, he eventually agreed to withdraw his candidacy and support the PH candidate. However, Perikatan Nasional won the seat.
Sivaraj was appointed a senator in March this year. - FMT
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