VIDEO l 1.01 min

P Waythamoorthy, a deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Department, is getting a chilly reception from his cabinet colleagues, with Khairy Jamaluddin becoming the third minister to call for his resignation.

"I agree ... If he wants to make baseless accusations and use inappropriate channels (to do so), then do it. But he does not need to be in the government," the youth and sports minister said in a Sinar Harian report today.

NONE Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein had earlier called on Waythamoorthy to step down for his criticism of the manner in which police killed five suspected gang-members in Penang last week.

Waythamoorthy, who remains Malaysian Hindraf Association chief, had been appointed a senator following a pre-election pact with BN, after it endorsed the movement's blueprint to uplift the Indian Malaysian community.

‘Khairy was wrong’

In a separate development, Jaringan Melayu Malaysia (JMM) has lashed out at Khairy for suggesting that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak was not supportive of Utusan Malaysia's racist headline ‘What more do the Chinese want?’ after the 13th general election.

NONE "As Umno Youth chief, he should have understood and supported the prime minister's statement before this,” JMM chief Azwandin Hamzah was quoted as saying in the Umno-owned Utusan .

"Khairy's denial is perhaps to placate the Chinese (Malaysians), but the fact is what he said is incorrect."

Asked to comment on the controversial headline, Najib had replied : "You blame Utusan but you don’t ask about the Chinese papers".

Azwanddin said Khairy should be criticising Chinese-language dailies instead.

'Waytha will not be pushed out by ministers'