MIC Wants Indian Studies Department To Be Maintained

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 28 (Bernama) -- The MIC wants Universiti Malaya to maintain the name of its Indian Studies Department (ISD), saying that any move to change or add to its name will cause serious repercussions.

MIC President Datuk Seri S.Samy Vellu urged Universiti Malaya Vice-Chancellor Datuk Ghauth Jasmon to reconsider his decision to rename the department to Indian and South Asian Studies Department.

"He has to listen to the views of the Indian community. Tamil is our life," he said in response Ghauth's statement yesterday on the move to rename the ISD.

Ghauth had reportedly said that although the name of the department would be changed, its programmes would be maintained.

"No, we will not accept any changes to the Indian Studies Department because it was the Indians who contributed to the department's existence and it is also our pride," Samy Vellu said.

He said he was informed by Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S.Subramaniam, who is also the MIC secretary-general, on Friday that the Cabinet had agreed to maintain the name of the ISD after Dr Subramaniam raised the issue at a recent Cabinet meeting.

He said the ISD was created with money collected from Indian estate workers in the early 1950s under the 'Save Tamil Fund'.

"The department has got many historical values to the Indian community. Changing its name or renaming it would mean showing disrespect to the Indian community."

If the reason for the change in name was due to the infighting among the ISD academia, the university should deal with them and not resort to changing its name, he said.

He said the MIC would seek government intervention if the university persisted in maintaining the name change.