DAP leader Lim Kit Siang today said that the detention of a student activist under the Internal Security Act (ISA) today could be linked to the fire which razed Dewan Tunku Canselor (DTC) in Universiti Malaya last Friday.

"It would be most unfortunate if the arrest today was related to the blaze since the cause is still being investigated," said Lim in a statement.

Following the pre-dawn fire, many quarters, especially Umno politicians, blamed 'militant students' for it, claiming that it was a move to prevent the Prime Minister from visiting the university the next day.

Lim described the detention of the Institut Kemahiran Mara (IKM) student, Khairul Anwar Zainuddin as "deplorable".

According to the veteran politician, the arrest was an indication that the government was going to come down hard on student activists.

Khairul was detained at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters at about 9.30am. Following this, police raided his house in Bangsar where some of his belongings were confiscated.

The 24-year-old is involved with a student organisation in Bangsar which stages dramas that promote ideas of reform and also provides free tuition to poor students.

Lim said that he was concerned with the increase of incidences where dissenting students have become the authorities' target of harassment.

He added that the ISA had never been used against student activists in the past 20 years, "but was used in the 70s when Dr Mahathir Mohamad was the Education minister".

"The use of the ISA shows that the prime minister is prepared to outdo his previous excesses, including the 1987 Operasi Lalang, to consolidate his power," said Lim.

In the 1987 operation, 107 politicians and activists were detained under the ISA on the grounds of being a threat to national security.

A scapegoat

Meanwhile, Keadilan Youth assistant secretary-general, Diong Chi Tzuoh, said Khairul's arrest could have been done because the authorities are 'looking for a scapegoat' in connection with the DTC fire.

Diong added that the arrest was "another act of tyranny which indicates that the abuse of the ISA is worsening".

Protesting against the detention, the Parti Rakyat Malaysia (PRM) Youth wing said the government should stop its harassment of student activists and allow them their right to voice their opinions in a legal and peaceful manner.

The movement's spokesperson Muhammad Ali Syed Hussein said that students are being harassed due to their families involvement in opposition parties.

The People's Manifesto Initiative (PMI), also condemned Khairul's arrest, stating that the police was "recalcitrant and flippant" in their attitude.