An application by a high ranking Indian Progressive Front (IPF) office-bearer to remove the party president will be heard by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Thursday.

In a continuing sign of a major split in the party, the application was filed by vice-president V Mathiyalagan against Jayashree Gnanapandithan from serving as the party's president.

The matter came before Deputy Registrar Diana Md Razali this morning but she fixed Thursday to hear it.

The application comes just days after the party's bizarre annual general meeting on Sunday - with Jayashree's faction and her opponents' holding the meeting simultaneously.

Jayashree was nominated to helm the party by its founding president MG Pandithan on his death bed last April.

Even then the party was already in a problem with anti-Pandithan grassroots leaders ganging up, asking him to relinquish his post.

However the split within the party grew bigger after Pandithan's death and with Jayashree's appointment as the new president.

Jayashree was accused of sidelining many veteran leaders, including those once seen as her husband's close confidantes.

Appointment letter a fraud

Mathiyalagan named Jayashree, party secretary-general K Velayutham and assistant secretary K Neducheralanathan as defendants in his suit filed on Nov 24.

Besides the injunction to stop Jayashree from being the president, he also sought damages, costs and other reliefs deemed fit by the court.

He also sought a court order to stop Jayashree from intervening in the affairs of the party and a declaration that she was not a legitimate IPF president and all actions by her as the president were null and void.

He also wanted a declaration that the letter appointing Jayashree as party president dated April 20, 2008 and the meeting of the party's supreme council held at Kuala Lumpur Hospital - where Pandithan was admitted - on April 20, 2008 was null and void.

Mathiyalagan alleged that the IPF supreme council's statement on Jayashree's appointment as acting president and later party president in place of her late husband was a fraud.

He said Jayashree's action in calling herself IPF president without any legitimate policies or powers had brought confusion to IPF supreme council members, IPF members and the public.

Jayashree denied the allegations in her reply filed on Dec 11. She said there was no fraud, complot or falsification in her appointment as party president.

She wanted to court to dismiss Mathiyalagan's application.

The three defendants were represented by lawyer S Selvam while K Saraswathy acted for Mathiyalagan.