In a move that should gain him some sympathy from the Indian Malaysian community, DAP leader Lim Guan Eng said he is trying hard to meet imprisoned Hindraf de facto leader P Uthayakumar.

lim guan eng interview 160813 03However, Lim (right), denied his motive was political and said he would appeal to the home minister since his request to meet with Uthayakumar was turned down by Prison Department director-general Zulkifli Omar.

"As an ex-convict myself, I know the needs that are not met and I plan to see Uthayakumar as a humanitarian gesture, " Lim told reporters at the DAP headquarters today.
This would including helping to meet Uthayakumar's medical needs, he said.

Lim presented reporters with copies of letters he had written to the Prison Department and Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in his official capacity as Penang chief minister.
Lim wrote the letters at the end of July and received a rejection letter on Sept 6.

He stressed that he had no previous relationship with Uthayakumar and that DAP has no ties with Hindraf.

Uthayakumar suffers a prolapsed disc

Utayakumar is currently at Kajang Prison, serving a jail term of two years and six months, after being convicted of sedition last June.
S Indra DeviUthayakumar's wife, S Indra Devi (left), said last month that Uthayakumar had shown her his swollen leg and hands, caused by a prolapsed disc, which could leave him paralysed if he is not given proper medical treatment.

Lim, who himself was once jailed for violation of the Printing Presses and Publications Act, said he sympathises with Uthayakumar.
The prison restricts the monthly visits to inmates to family members and lawyers, he said.

Uthayakumar is the elder brother of P Waythamoorthy, the deputy minister in the PM's Department.
He was sentenced to prison in June for making seditious statements in 2007.
The court imposed the sentence just hours after Waythamoorthy was sworn into office as a senator.