Hindraf leaders no longer a threat to Malaysia: Minister

Putrajaya, May 21 (ANI): Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz has said Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leaders are no longer deemed a threat to Malaysia.

The Hindraf, which is a coalition of 30 Hindu non-governmental organizations committed to the preservation of Hindu community rights and heritage in a multiracial Malaysia, was declared an illegal organisation last year.

Mentioning the now-defunct Communist Party of Malaya (CPM), which remained outlawed despite its former members being freed, Nazri said: "In the case of CPM, its former members sat down with the government and pledged to abandon their ideologies. But CPM remains a banned party. It does not mean that since Hindraf leaders were released, the ban on their organisation has been lifted."

All five Hindraf leaders held under the Internal Security Act were recently released, New Strait Times reports. peaking about the formation of the Malaysian Makkal Sakthi Party by several key Hindraf members, Nazri said they had the right to do so.

Its pro-tem secretary-general, Kannan Ramasamy, had said since Hindraf was outlawed, it was timely that the movement and its support base found an alternative conduit to champion the Indian cause.

He said the new party would remain neutral and work with whichever coalition that was willing to support Hindraf's 18-point demand. (ANI)