KUALA LUMPUR – Fifty MIC leaders in Selangor have decided to withdraw support for their coalition Barisan Nasional (BN) in the state elections and will instead help a former party leader, K. Parthiban, campaign for Perikatan Nasional (PN) candidates.
MIC terminated Parthiban’s membership earlier this week after he attended a PN event, where he was named head of the PN Indian Supporters Club for northern Selangor.
Parthiban’s announcement on the 50 MIC Selangor leaders was made today at a club event in Shah Alam, according to New Straits Times.
He said they would support his efforts to boost PN candidates as they, too, were upset that MIC is not contesting in the state elections.
In the BN coalition, only Umno is fielding candidates in the state polls.
In Selangor, PN is fielding six candidates of Indian descent.
Parthiban, who was a MIC central working committee member until he was sacked recently for supporting PN, today said the 50 MIC leaders would help ensure that the Indian community in Selangor is heard and represented, adding that they can be of benefit to PN.
The PN Supporters Club Secretariat for Indians in northern Selangor was launched on Sunday by Selangor PN chairman and former senior minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali.
Earlier this month, the MIC and MCA leadership announced the parties’ decisions to sit out the August 12 elections in six states: Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang, Negri Sembilan and Selangor.
The two BN component parties said they would focus on strengthening themselves for the next general election after their dismal performance in the 15th general election in November. – The Vibes, July 28, 2023
