Part 4: Bala finds his life turned upside down (UPDATED with BM Translation)
Life on the run is not as rosy as most imagine when one’s family has to suffer. Bala finds that the money means very little when family life and the children’s education are sacrificed. He decides to change all that and to regain his normal life but his ‘handlers’ have other ideas. He realises, therefore, he has to break away from them if he really wants to be free.
THE CORRIDORS OF POWER
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Q 55. Why did you not tell them the truth about the way the 2nd statutory declaration was made since you had your family with you and they were all safe?
A. I was still in a state of confusion and was still concerned for the safety of my family. I was made aware that Deepak had some very powerful connections, especially after meeting the Malay VIP Datuk at The Curve a few nights previously and his advice was still in my mind.
I was also surprised at how far Deepak’s connections reached as he seemed capable of organising things in different countries and had even arranged a Thai woman to apply for our Indian visas in Bangkok.
At that time I had no idea what to expect so I felt I should follow their advice until I could think more clearly as I had my family to consider as I did not want them to be harmed.
My family and I were also in a foreign country with no access to finances.
Q 56. Did you communicate with anyone after this?
A. Yes. ASP Suresh called me from KL and advised me to change hotels so that the police officers from KL would not be able to contact me again if they required a further statement.
He also informed me to call my nephew in KL and ask him to stop talking to the press and to avoid holding any more candle light vigils as this was making Deepak feel uneasy. I then called my nephew and told him to stop all activities of this nature and he agreed. (See the video here: Stop the campaign, PI tells nephew)
Q 57. Did you change hotels?
A. Yes, we moved to the Beverly Hills Hotel. It was while we were at this new hotel that I received news from Rajesh that our visas could not be done in time as it would take at least 5 working days to process.
Deepak then arranged for a moneychanger, to whom he was acquainted, to pay me 100,000 Thai Baht for my expenses. I then waited for further instructions at this hotel.
Q 58. What happened after that?
A. At about 2.30 pm on the 11th July Rajesh called me to tell me to go to the airport to collect some e-tickets he had arranged for my family and I to fly to Kathmandu, so we packed our bags and headed to the airport.
However when we reached the airport Rajesh called and told me the flight had only been arranged for the next morning at 10.00 am. We then took a taxi back into town and checked into another hotel.
The next morning we returned to the airport, picked up our tickets and flew on a Thai Airways flight to Kathmandu.
Q 59. What happened when you landed in Kathmandu?
A. We were met at the airport by a representative of the Yak & Yeti Hotel who drove us to that hotel.
Q 60. Why was it necessary for you to fly to Kathmandu?
A. Before we could enter India we needed to apply for our Indian visas, which we had not been able to get in Bangkok.
ASP Suresh told me Deepak did not want us to stay in Bangkok any longer as the police knew we were there and that is why he wanted us to leave to Kathmandu so we could apply for our visas there.
Q 61. How long did you spend in Kathmandu?
A. We had applied to the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu for our Indian visas. After we managed to obtain 1-month visas for India, we left Kathmandu for New Delhi. This was on the 22nd July. We had spent approximately 10 days in Kathmandu.
Q 62. How long did you spend in Delhi?
A. We stayed in a hotel in Delhi for 2 nights before flying to Madurai en-route to Madras.
Q 63. How did you manage to extend your 1-month visas?
A. Our visas expired on the 21st August 2008. Deepak’s people had promised to get an extension for 1 year for us but nothing was done. So I had to get a 1-month extension for myself and my family till 20th September 2008.
I then sent my wife and children back to KL to stay with my mother-in-law in Segambut without Deepak’s knowledge.
I remained in Madras trying to get my visa extended. Deepak’s agent called Kumar tried to help me but after 5 months nothing had happened. I complained about this to Deepak and ASP Suresh when they visited me in Chennai. Deepak called Kumar who returned the passport to me with a sick certificate saying I could not have left the country due to an illness. This had to be done as I was then in India illegally as my visa had expired.
I then asked for help from my wife’s uncle who is a State Exco Member for Karaikal district. He managed to get my visa extended until 5th September 2009.
Q 64. Did you return to Malaysia during this period?
A. Yes, I returned a few times to sort out some of my personal affairs. Each time I returned I entered the country via Thailand across the Malaysia-Thai border at Bukit Kayu Hitam and left the same way. I did not go through Malaysian immigration.
I did not contact anyone each time I returned as I was afraid Deepak would find out. The only person who knew I had returned to Malaysia was ASP Suresh but he did not let Deepak know. He was upset with me for allowing my wife and children to return to Malaysia but I explained to him that my children needed to be educated and they could not get into a local school in Chennai.
Whenever I returned to Malaysia I used to stay with my wife and mother-in-law in Segambut.
Q 65. Where did your wife stay all the time she was in Malaysia?
A. She stayed with my mother-in-law in Segambut and managed to get my children into a school in Sentul. She did come to Chennai a few times with the children to visit me.
Q 66. Where are your wife and children now?
A. They are at present in Chennai. I managed to enrol my 2 eldest children into a school there. My wife may return to KL so that my youngest child can receive his schooling there. I will have to stay with my eldest two children in Chennai.
Q 67. Can you remember the dates you returned to Malaysia?
A. Yes, I was in KL from the 16.02.2009 to the 05.03.2009. During this period I met Deepak at his office in Sungai Besi. He was very worried I had returned to Malaysia and asked me to go back to Chennai immediately. He warned me that my life would be in danger if I stayed any longer.
The second time I returned to Malaysia was from the 11.04.2009 to the 02.05.2009.
The third time I returned to Malaysia was at the end of July 2009.
Q 68. What did you do when you returned at the end of July?
A. I decided to contact my lawyer Americk Sidhu and explain to him exactly what had happened to me over the past 1 year as I was very unhappy with the situation I was in.
TO BE CONTINUED
Part 2: Bala’s prison without bars
Part 3: The Malaysian police catch up with Bala
Translated into BM at: http://gomalaysian.blogspot.com/2009/11/raja-petra-bahagian-4-bala-merasakan.html
