No Samy Vellu in sight, a first for the domineering MIC leader. — Picture by Choo Choy May
It was the first time since last year's general elections that Samy Vellu was missing at a hugely symbolic Indian event graced by the prime minister.
His absence appears to indicate a distancing in ties between the Najib administration and the traditional MIC leadership dominated by Samy Vellu.
Several days before Sunday's event, word was already out that the MIC president would not be attending the event.
While his detractors said he was not invited, his supporters said he was busy because the Batu Caves event clashed with the Perak MIC convention.
But critics point out that the Perak MIC meeting was a small affair compared to the hugely significant Batu Caves meet that was attended by the prime minister, and could have been easily postponed.
“The new Najib administration is keeping some distance from him,” said a political analyst of Indian affairs, who declined to be named because of the sensitivities involved.
“Najib wants to show that he cares for the Indians but does not want to be dragged down by Samy Vellu’s unpopularity among grassroots Indians,” the analyst said, adding that the Indian leaders attending the function with Najib were “mostly not MIC-type people.”
“His absence was very noticeable but not regretted,” he said.
Except for deputy Federal Territories minister Datuk M. Saravanan, most of the top MIC leaders were with Samy Vellu in Perak.
Samy Vellu has long sought to control the Indian community by dominating the management of the caves complex.
He has always given the opening speech on the first day of the Thaipusam celebration, the only event in the country that brings together nearly a million Hindu annually.
The one time Hindus rejected his presence was in the aftermath of Hindraf’s 2007 protest when hundreds of thousands devotees kept away in a show of defiance and rejection of Samy Vellu.
Current chairman Nadarajah was seen as his man in the management committee but in recent months he is “striking out” on his own.
Sunday’s event was organised independent of the MIC and Samy Vellu, sources said.
Nearly 6,000 Indians and others welcomed Najib to Batu Caves, a hugely symbolic gesture that received front page coverage in all three Tamil dailies, including Samy Vellu’s Tamil Nesan daily.
All the newspapers played up a photograph of Najib with a huge neck-to-toe garland of white flowers with red stripes, with Nadarajah dominating the prime spot beside the prime minister instead of Samy Vellu.
Najib also offered aid for promising Indian entrepreneurs, cash for Tamil schools and support for Hindu temples.
The more neutral Malaysian Nanban daily printed their story under a huge banner heading that said, People Overwhelm Prime Minister along with numerous photographs of the event.
This is the first time in memory Samy Vellu was glaringly missing from the big stage and that is something the community will notice quickly.
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