Thaipusam ignites racist rants on Twitter

The annual Thaipusam festival never fails to bring traffic at Batu Caves and its surrounding areas to a crawl.

The Hindu homage to Lord Muruga draws more than a million people, among them devotees, tourists and Malaysians of all faiths.

Since taking over the reins in 2003, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has also made it a point to visit the iconic Batu Caves temple on Thaipusam, which is a public holiday in several states.

This year, Thaipusam fell on a Friday (Jan 17), which is also the day that Muslims perform their Solat Jumaat in mosques.

And the traffic congestion as a result of Thaipusam saw a slew of racist and derogatory remarks made on Twitter.

Among others, one tweet says: “Bodoh punya keling (derogatory term for Indians) paria baruah anjing! Thaipusam kau, kau cuti. Aku nak pergi Solat Jumaat, kau tak bagi. Keling sakai anjing.”

(Stupid pariah Indian dogs. It is your Thaipusam, you go on leave. I want to go carry out Friday prayers, you do not allow. Keling sakai dogs.)

'Politicians to blame'

Screen captures of these messages have now gone viral.

Observers have blamed politicians from race-based parties for the regression in racial ties due to the playing up of racial and religious sentiments to garner votes.

Umno and its leaders often shoulder the lion’s share of the blame.

Some have claimed that Umno has chosen to up the racial and religious ante as its leaders are aware that it is the only formula that can ensure the party continues to remain in power.

Prior to this, MIC lodged a police report against a Facebook user, "Man Namblast", who posted a status on Jan 18 that read: "Berpuluh ribu syaitan sedang berarak menaiki tangga Batu Cave." (Tens of thousands of devils are marching up the steps of Batu Caves).