Putra Jaya, July 19 – Dato Seri G.Palanivel’s key supporters numbering about 25 met yesterday in a leading hotel in Putra Jaya to discuss and strategise their next course of political actions. However, sources said several key leaders were missing from the meeting which was chaired by former Johor State MIC Chairman Tan Sri S.Balakrishnan (pic).
Palanivel himself was missing from the meeting but one source pointed out that he was not invited for the meeting to enable other leaders to discuss matters with a free and open mind.
However, other key leaders aligned to Palanivel such as Datuk S.Sothinathan, former Treasurer General Datuk S.Murugesan, and Senator V.Subramaniam (Barat Maniam) were also missing from this crucial meeting.
One of the leaders who attended the meeting yesterday confirmed that these leaders did not attend the meeting but Tan Sri Bala announced at the meeting that they have informed him about their prior appointments and commitments and that they agreed to abide by any decisions taken at the meeting.
Another key supporter of Palanivel missing from the meeting was Sunther Subramaniam, a former CWC member appointed by Palanivel. Sunther filed his branch’s nominations papers on last Sunday (12th July) under Dr Subramaniam’s leadership.
Decisions taken at the meeting – No appeal to Federal Court
One of the leaders who attended the meeting, speaking on anonymity, confirmed with ‘selliyal.com’ that the meeting concluded with two key decisions after much deliberation.
The first decision of the meeting was to drop the idea of appealing to Federal Court against the Court of Appeal decision delivered on July 13, in respect of the Judicial Review application filed by Palanivel and four others.
The second decision of the meeting was to take up the party’s crisis to the attention of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. In this regard the key leaders would seek an appointment with the Prime Minister to explain about the present state of affairs in MIC and would offer some solutions for the current problems in the party.
One of the possible solutions discussed at the meeting yesterday was for both factions to come to together for the sake of party unity and allow all legally registered branches to file for nominations and to agree that all suspended and ceased members regain their respective membership status in the party.
Palanivel’s faction has been maintaining that 15 of 2009 CWC members, including Dr Subramaniam, have been suspended for one year by G.Palanivel who claims he is still the President of MIC.
However, 2009 CWC headed by Dr Subramaniam, interpreted Section 91 of MIC Constitution which resulted in Palanivel and four others ceasing to be members of MIC for taking the party matter to court. RoS accepted the interpretation and declared Dr Subra as the Acting President of the party.
Could the meeting decisions be implemented?
According to sources, the meeting yesterday also reiterated that with all the suspended and ceased members returning to the party, the Presidential election should be held in a democratic and healthy manner and that the winner should accommodate the losers and that the losers should give their undivided support to the winners without causing any further problems.
However, MIC sources said that these suggestions and proposals come too late at a time legal consequences have taken precedence over party matters. Palanivel’s faction should have made this decision much earlier, they point out.
With RoS having endorsed Dr Subramaniam as the Acting President and with the Court of Appeal having reaffirmed the High Court decision on RoS rulings, how yesterday meeting’s decisions could be taken up further to be accepted by Dr Subra’s faction is something else.
Whether Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak would entertain a meeting with Palanivel’s faction is also something yet to be seen.
Branch nominations underway…
Meanwhile, it must also be pointed out that more than 2,000 MIC branches have already filed their nominations spread over 3 days on 10, 11 and 12th July.
Many more branches which failed to file their nominations for various reasons have appealed to MIC leadership to allow them to participate in the nominations. The dateline for such appeals ends today, 19th July 2015.
-R.Mutharasan
