Open letter to Mr. P.Waythamoorthy, Hindraf Chairperson

I am compelled to write this letter to express my feelings about the fresh call by you to the community to support you in 2017 for another round of agitation.

Mugilan Letchumanan

Dear Mr.Waythamoorthy,

I am one of the 100,000 Indians who took part in the historic demonstrations on 25th Nov 2007. I was 24 years then and was still in college, very aggressive and impulsive. I got detained and took great effort from my family to get me released. I am 33 now with two sons aged 7 and 5. As a father, I am concerned about their future in this country. I am more sober and critical on matters concerning me, my family and by extension my community. I am compelled to write this letter to express my feelings about the fresh call by you to the community to support you in 2017 for another round of agitation.

Mr Waythamoorthy, you stirred up the community by filing a frivolous case against the British Government in the London Courts in Aug 2007 claiming USD 4 trillion as compensation (you told innocent folks the possibility of each Indian getting One million US dollars ).You collected funds, (I too contributed to support your stay in UK). Although I was not a believer of that case, nevertheless I supported you because by default it would give an international profile to the predicament of Malaysian Indians.

After the demonstration, few of us got detained, your brother Uthayakumar and 4 others were sent to Kamunting under ISA, you quietly sneaked out and ran to the UK. You negotiated a deal, came back, embraced Najib, and became Senator and Deputy Minister. Subsequently you resigned. You got to where you were was because of thousands of guys like me. You lost us. Now you are attempting to come back to use us again. Forget it my friend.

My motivation to support Hindraf and participate in the demonstration was to stand up against the alienation the Indians in Malaysia were subjected to under the 22 year racist regime of Mahathir Mohammad. Years before, I was informed that when Mohandas and Mahendran reached the Everest peak, RTM was forced to cut the live telecast because Mahathir was disappointed that both successful climbers were Indians. Such was Mahathir’s racial prejudice and bigotry. He failed to appreciate that both our guys placed the Malaysian flag at the summit and not the Indian flag.

After Nov 2007, we supported the opposition in 2008 and 2013 elections. Conspicuously over the last 8 years the opposition went silent on Indian plight although they controlled two high growth, economically prosperous states with high Indian population density, there was not even a symbolic program within the state administration of Penang and Selangor for Indian empowerment.

Dear Mr. Waythamoorthy, please tell me what should I do? Follow you next year on your anti BN agitation?

Mr. Waythamoorthy please leave the community alone; enough of your pseudo intellectual politics of playing with the community’s plight and pain for your gain. You have lost credibility. Your attempt to project an image as the champion of the marginalized Indian again will have no takers.