PKR women leaders resign en bloc

Padang Serai PKR division is dealt another blow when the women's wing top brass calls it quit.

PADANG SERAI: Still reeling from the shock resignation of its chief N Gobalakrishnan, Padang Serai PKR division was dealt another blow when six of its women’s wing leaders quit the party en bloc on Sunday.

Those who quit were the wing chief B Deepa Shanthi, deputy chief R Vasanthi, who is also the party national women wing exco, secretary KM Vejaletchimy, treasurer M Reeta, and committee members P Santhi and C Palaniammal.

Their mass resignation from all party posts and membership left the wing virtually redundant with only three of its nine-member leadership committee still hanging on.

When contacted, Deepa Shanthi said the group decided to leave the party due to “internal marginalisation of Indians”.

“We can no longer stomach the wrong happenings in the party,” she told FMT today.

She said the out-going six have faxed their respective resignation letters to the party headquarters.

On last month’s Gobalakrishnan resignation, she said it clearly exposed PKR double-standards and hypocrisy in advocating its so-called multi-racial politics.

She slammed PKR leaders and candidates for betraying Indians in the country after promising so much during the last general election campaign.

“The leaders and candidates chanted Makkal Sakti mantra everywhere they wooed Indians.

“They stirred up high hopes among under-privileged Indians to envision a better life ahead by promising reforms and changes in system of governance.

“But now Indians are forgotten, sidelined and isolated lots in PKR agenda.

“PKR leaders and candidates only want Indian votes, not their problems,” said Deepa Shanthi.

The Makkal Sakti hymn, a battle cry of minority rights movement, Hindraf Makkal Sakti, was loudly sung by leaders and candidates from Pakatan Rakyat allies before Indian-dominated crowds during the election campaign in 2008.

Mesmerised by Hindraf activists and the mantra, ethnic Indians overwhelmingly backed Pakatan candidates, resulting in the coalition winning five states, one of which was re-captured by Barisan Nasional (BN) through a coup, and denying BN its parliamentary two-thirds majority.

But since then Indians are increasingly drifting away from Pakatan, with some returning to the BN fold.

Critics have blamed the incompetence of Pakatan state governments in Kedah, Penang and Selangor to address pressing Indian issues, especially Tamil schools, Hindu temples, burial grounds and Indian settlements, for causing this downslide.

Deepa Shanthi said Gobalakrishnan’s resignation was the result of marginalisation, discrimination and isolation of Indians in PKR and Pakatan.

After being a PKR loyalist and diehard supporter of PKR supremo Anwar Ibrahim for 12 years, the Padang Serai MP quit the party on Jan 29 amidst differences with the party leadership.

Prior to his resignation, Gobalakrishan was already crossing swords with the current party leadership controlled by Anwar and deputy president Azmin Ali.


His trouble started late last year when he complained about the blatant electoral malpractices that occurred in the party polls.

He accused Azmin and his gang of being the main culprits behind the electoral cheatings, fraudulence and irregularities that took place.

When asked whether more women members from PKR Padang Serai division would follow her out of the party, Deepa Shanthi said she and others would not persuade anyone to quit.

“Let them voluntarily decide their own political future… we are out of it now,” she said.

Meanwhile, the division secretary, S Nagalingam, said he was unaware about the mass resignation of the women’s wing top brass.

However, he assured that he would discuss the issue immediately with the division acting chairman Johari Ismail to resolve it amicably.

“We will restructure and reactivate the women’s wing with new faces,” he told FMT.