MIC president S Samy Vellu today lashed out at his counterpart from the Indian Progressive Front, MG Pandithan, for alleging that MIC is ignoring the problems of the Indian Malaysian grassroots.

He doesnt understand the meaning of grassroots, Samy countered, claiming instead that MIC is a grassroots party which serves the community in every aspect.

Pandithan was reported in the New Straits Times today as saying that the Indian Malaysian grassroots feel the MIC, which claims to represent Indian Malaysians, is not listening to their problems.

IPF deals with the grassroots, we know them, the daily quoted the former MIC vice-president who now leads the MIC breakaway party.

Samy today refuted his long-time rivals accusation and insisted that MIC is not a party dictated by a leader.

It is not a party of just one leader. It is a party of members. It is a party of many people. It is a party that really serves people.

Samy, who is also works minister, was speaking at a press conference after receiving a visit from his counterpart from the Bahrain government, Fahmi Ali Al-Jowder, in his office in Kuala Lumpur today.

The Bahraini minister expressed his interest in seeking Malaysian expertise in the field of constructions, among others, to build a Formula One racing track.

A nobody

Pandithan claimed that the IPF has tried to initiate talks with the MIC on how to deal with the serious problems affecting the Indian Malaysians, but did not receive any response from MIC leaders.

He cited an example where MIC has failed to solve the problems of Tamil education which have been around since the 1960s, and claimed that disunity among the Indian Malaysian community leaders was the crux of the problem.

Samy, who sacked Pandithan from MIC more than a decade ago, today dismissed him as a nobody.

As far as I am concerned, you can go and see the Registrar of Societies. Where are his 500,000 members? he asked, referring to IPFs claim that it has the support of half a million Indian Malaysians, which make up about eight percent of the countrys 22 million population.

Bluffing around for a long time wont work in politics. He can do anything he likes. Nobody cares, said Samy.

IPF has been practically begging to be admitted into the ruling Barisan Nasional front for the past seven years.