In the 2008 general elections, Hindraf gave the political direction and 90% of Indian voters voted for PKR, DAP and PAS. PKR, DAP and PAS made full use of the Nov 25 Hindraf wave and won their 82 MP and about 200 DUN seats and wrested power in four west coast states. But after having made full use of the Indian poor voters they were dumped like sucked oranges.

State land is within the exclusive and almost absolute purview of the DAP, PKR, PAS chief minister and menteri besar of Penang, Selangor, Kedah and Perak respectively. But despite over two and a half years of ruling these states (except now Perak), even state land (which is at no cost to the Pakatan states) has been denied to all the Indian poor Hindu temples, Hindu cemeteries, Tamil schools and Indian villages and settlements. There is no wholesome permanent solution.

Why? Where is the change? How is the supposedly multi-racial top leadership of PKR, DAP and PAS any different from the previous Umno regime? Pray tell us of one critical and pressing Indian problem that any of the 78 PKR, DAP and PAS MPs including their 11 Indian MP mandor have ever walked out of or put an emergency motion in Parliament? Why have they refused to even seriously debate in Parliament the estimated 2,237 top and high achieving Indian students being denied university and matriculation places and JPA scholarships? They fearing losing Malay votes? Wanting to be seen to be politically correct? Political expediency?

The top leadership of PKR, DAP and PAS have continuously refused to address the above and scores of other pressing and critical Indian problems at least in the PKR, DAP and PAS-ruled states that we are highlighting on a day to day basis.

The PKR, DAP and PAS top leadership should not side track from the aforesaid pressing Indian problems especially in these Pakatan-ruled states of Penang, Selangor and Kedah besides getting their Indian mandor to attack HRP. Some 100,000 poor Indians would not have gone to the streets for the Nov 25, 2007 Hindraf Rally had PKR, DAP and PAS also spoken up for the poor Indians.

It is an open secret that DAP PKR and PAS are not multi-racial enough to also speak up for the Indian poor. It is because of PKR, DAP and PAS’ blatant sidestepping of Indian poor problems that HRP has been forced into existence.

The MIC was almost wiped out in the 2008 general elections losing two-thirds or six out of the nine parliamentary seats and 75% or 15 out the 20 state seats granted to it by Umno/BN.

Despite it’s worst ever electoral performance, Umno not only gave way but bent over backwards to support and ensure MIC’s win in the Hulu Selangor by elections in 2010 which had a mere 19% Indian voters but 53.9% Malay voters. And sure enough MIC won albeit, to continue becoming Umno’s mandor.

But the ‘multi-racial’ PKR not only refused to make way for HRP but in wanting to be seen as a more Malay party than Umno, filed a Malay candidate. This was silently watched by the ‘Malaysian Malaysia’ DAP and PAS ‘for all’. A strong HRP candidate contesting under the PKR, DAP or PAS ticket, would have won the Hulu Selangor seat like how the ‘new kid on the block’ PSM Indian candidate turned giant-killer and defeated the most senior and 30 year standing cabinet minister in Sg Siput.

After all, the MIC candidate won with only a mere 1,725 vote majority. The Indian poor would have had at least one lone voice in Parliament in the backdrop of all the other 11 Pakatan Indian MP’s having been reduced to being mere mandor and the rest of the 82 Opposition MP’s including Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang and Hadi Awang refusing to champion even the pressing 53-year-old long outstanding Indian poor problems.

PKR, DAP and PAS’ choosing of a non-Indian candidate in Hulu Selangor is not the first. PKR had chosen all Malay candidates in traditionally Indian reserved seats as they do not form a majority in any of the 222 Parliament or 576 state seats as is even recognized by the Umno regime. Beginning with the 1999 general elections, and the by-elections in Teluk Kemang and Lunas in 2000, Ijok in 2003, the 2004 and 2008 general elections and now finally in the Hulu Selangor by-election, the traditional Indian seats have been snatched away to make worse the plight of Indian poor.

Going by Pakatan’s multi-racialism, Indian candidates should also have been given the opportunity to contest in Permatang Pauh (PKR), Bukit Gantang (PAS) and Ketari (DAP). But their brand of ‘multi-racialism’ does not work this way. Instead Hindraf and HRP are accused of being racist for questioning both Umno and PKR and DAP and PAS.

It is plain and obvious that the top leadership of PKR, DAP and PAS do not want to give HRP even the lone voice at the highest Parliamentary political level. PKR, DAP and PAS do not want the pressing Indian poor problems to be ventilated as in their political calculation, they may become a political liability to Pakatan as they may end up losing the Malay vote. Never mind the Indian poor ‘kena aniaya ’ (victimized) on a day-to-day basis.

With 735,551 mostly Malay voters, PAS is ruling Kelantan. Similarly with 704,097 mostly Chinese voters, DAP rules Penang. But even with an almost similar 715,099 Indian voters as at the 2008 Electoral Roll, Umno has gerrymandered the seats in such a way that the Indians do not form a majority in any of the 222 Parliamentary or 576 state seats with the view they be at the complete mercy of both Umno and also PKR, DAP and PAS.

HRP has never and will never beg for seats from PKR, DAP and PAS or from the Umno/BN masters. HRP is not a desperate political party. We are political activists first and politicians last. Pushed to the wall, HRP as a last resort is going solo in it’s Project 15/38 by concentrating Indian voters into 15 parliamentary and 38 state seats respectively. Left with no alternative, this is the only way forward for especially the Indian poor.

We will in the first phase focus on one Indian majority seat in each of the seven frontline seats as follows:

1. Parliament Padang Serai and DUN Lunas in Kedah

2. Parliament Batu Kawan and DUN Prai in Penang

3. Parliament Ipoh Barat and DUN Buntung in Perak

4. Parliament Teluk Kemang and DUN Port Dickson N. Sembilan

5. Parliament Kota Raja and DUN Sri Andalas in Selangor

6. Parliament Cameron Highlands and DUN Tanah Rata in Pahang.

7. Parliament Tebrau and DUN Puteri Wangsa in Johor.

If the MIC in BN have been given a raw deal of nine Parliament and 20 state seats, it is no deal at all in PKR, DAP and PAS/Pakatan where HRP is given zero Parliament and zero state seats. We will only contest in these elected positions if we are politically empowered to speak up and make a stand without fear or favour. We are not prepared to become the Indian mandor either for the Umno or PKR, DAP or PAS political masters.

With the Nov 27, 2007 Hindraf Rally spirit, HRP will again raise to the occasion in the 2012/ 2013 general elections.

The writer is HRP secretary-general (pro tem ).