There was one less DAP member of parliament in the Dewan Rakyat today as the party chairperson and Bukit Gelugor MP Karpal Singh began his six-month suspension for having misled the House over the oath-taking ceremony in May.

The three-day deadline for him to apologise expired last Friday, thereby leading to the higher penalty being imposed.

Dewan Rakyat deputy speaker Lim Si Cheng told malaysiakini this afternoon that Karpal is now barred from attending the sessions for the stipulated period.

"This is in accordance with the Parliamentary Privileges Committee's recommendation which was adopted by the House last week," he said when met at the lobby.

Lim said Karpal is expected to return to the House for the first meeting next year, which is scheduled for March. The current meeting is slated for Sept 1 to Dec 21, with a break in between for Ramadhan (the Muslim fasting month).

Karpal, who was not in the House today, has maintained it was not his intention to mislead the House when he protested on May 17 that certain parliamentarians had not raised their right hand while being sworn into office.

He cited the wrong legislation to back his assertion and later corrected himself before the media. However, he did not respond to Speaker Dr Mohamed Zahir Ismail's request for an explanation, on the basis that the protest had been overruled when raised.

A motion was then tabled on behalf of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to refer Karpal to the Privileges Committee, which then found him guilty. Its report recommended that he be told to apologise and serve a 10-day suspension, or be barred for six months.

Last Tuesday, a motion to sanction him was passed after a debate of three and a half hours. Karpal has refused to apologise, saying he would be a MP-in-exile.

This is the third suspension of his 30-year political career. He will not be allowed to received the MP's monthly allowances or enjoy other perks.

'Replacements' found

The DAP has formed a 'sympathy, support and solidarity campaign' committee for Karpal (or the 'SSS Karpal Singh' campaign) to highlight his predicament. The campaign is headed by DAP Tanjong MP Chow Kon Yeow.

Chow said during the period of suspension, three other Penang-based party MPs will take raise his concerns and problems relating to his constituency.

"I will help Karpal in particular to raise the issue of compensation for land acquisition for the Porr (Penang Outer Ring Road project) which affects those in the Bukit Gelugor constituency," he said when met.

The other two Penang-based DAP MPs are Bukit Mertajam MP Chong Eng and Bagan MP Lim Hock Seng.

On the campaign, Chow said the committee would hold its first meeting tomorrow night. He said the campaign would focus on relaying the fact of Karpal's case to the people, especially voters in Bukit Gelugor.

"We want the people themselves to judge whether Karpal has been a victim of the BN majority (in Parliament) which has been used against him," he said.

Chow also expressed the party's hope that recently-freed former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim will lend support to Karpal, who has been representing him in legal battles to secure his release.

"We will try to get Anwar to support Karpal after his return from medical treatment ... perhaps we can get him to make an appearance in Bukit Gelugor," he said.

Anwar, who is currently in Munich, Germany, is expected to return home next month after performing the umrah (mini-pilgrimage) in Mecca.