MIC strongly condemns the assault on Deputy Education Minister and Hulu Selangor Member of Parliament, P Kamalanathan last Sunday, said its president G Palanivel.

He said the incident should not have happened, as no minister or deputy minister had been punched before in the nation’s history.

“I have spoken to Kamalanathan on this matter. It should not have happened and I do not know why it has happened. Maybe Kamalanathan had agreed to the person asking for a teacher to be transferred.

“But I will meet Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak tomorrow and discuss further on this,” he told reporters after attending MIC’s Ponggal (harvest festival of the Indian community) celebration at Little India, Brickfields in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

He was responding to the incident where Kamalanathan was allegedly punched by a man while attending a programme in Hulu Selangor.  

Palanivel, who is also the Natural Resources and Environment Minister, noted that several police reports has been made by MIC members regarding this unexpected incident and hoped police would take action against the assailant.

In a separate statement, MIC deputy president Dr S Subramaniam urged the police to take visible and stern action against the offender as such an incident should not be repeated.

“In our duty as members of the administration, we cannot always please everyone. If we allow any form of intimidation to affect the performance of our duties, it will eventually lead to a lawless society,” he said.

In a separate development, Palanivel said MIC will be distributing 50,000 drink and snack packets to devotees in conjunction with the Thaipusam celebration (on Jan 17), outside its headquarters in the early morning on Jan 16.

“The temple procession from the Sri Maha Mariamman temple in Jalan Tun HS Lee to Batu Caves would start at 12 midnight and we expect them to pass in front of the MIC headquarters between 2 and 4am,” he said.

Palanivel also urged all temple management committees and non-governmental organisations to go green to preserve and protect the environment.

Some 200 people including foreigners took part in the Ponggal celebration yesterday.

Meanwhile, the police have recorded statements from 20 people, including an alleged assailant, to facilitate investigations into the assault on Kamalanathan.

In the incident at about 2.30pm, Kamalanathan, who is also Hulu Selangor member of parliament, was punched in the neck while attending a programme at the service centre.

Selangor police chief Mohd Shukri Dahlan, in a text message yesterday, said the case was being investigated for causing hurt.

He said the investigation paper was ready and would be forwarded to the deputy public prosecutor for further action.

- Bernama