GEORGE TOWN – The Penang Hindu Endowment Board plans to unveil a new lineup of commissioners after Jelutong MP R.S.N. Rayer was nominated to take over from former deputy chief minister II P. Ramasamy as the chairperson of the board.
Rayer resumes the post from now until the end of July, next year.
The commissioners are believed to comprise the cream of the Indian society in the state.
Among the new names mooted included Penang MIC chairman Datuk J. Dhinagaran, marking the first time since 2008 that a MIC leader is to sit on a state-linked board.
Dhinagaran is a reputable restaurateur, who has grown the Mantra and Jaya brand restaurants into household names here.
When contacted, he confirmed that he was nominated, but it still depends on whether the board would accept his candidacy.
The commissioners are expected to be formally unveiled at a media briefing on Thursday.
It is learnt that the majority of the office-bearers under Ramasamy’s three terms here were sidelined.
Among the new faces are prominent property valuer K. Chandra Mohan; Jagruti Upadhyaya, a member of the Gujarati community; and all four Hindu elected and appointed legislative representatives.
They are Senator A. Lingeshwaran, Prai assemblyman Datuk Seri S. Sundarajoo, Bagan Dalam assemblyman K. Kumaran, and two-term Batu Uban assemblyman A. Kumaresan.
Other names mooted were T. Sundraraj, a civil society activist, Penang Indian Chamber of Commerce president Datuk S. Parthiban, senior civil servant Dr K. Vishanthini, religious official N. Dinnesh and accountant G. Shanmugnathan.
Mitigating split
Meanwhile, an Indian political observer here said that the endowment board needs to help mitigate the split, which had emerged after Ramasamy’s decision to exit DAP last month.
Ramasamy had become the local community’s face and figurehead since 2008.
This was also reflected in the shortfall of votes from the Indian community towards Pakatan Harapan (PH) in the last state elections in Penang and Kedah, during which voter turnout among them was believed to be low.
There is also a move to reach out to Deputy Chief Minister II Jagdeep Singh Deo to assist the community in their struggle for better recognition in both the public and private sectors.
Former Johor-based senator S. Ramakrishnan posted on social media that Rayer is a good choice to lead the endowment board.
He also hoped that Hindu temples could offer classes for young Hindus to learn new skills and become a knowledge haven for them.
“They must have role models for other temples to follow. Temples depend on devotees for support, but in turn, they don’t provide any service to the community.
“The board needs to rethink the role of temples besides (only) being places of worship,” said Ramakrishnan. – The Vibes, September 5, 2023
