Human Rights Party (HRP) leader P Uthayakumar is dead-set on meeting Kedah Menteri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak to settle the Kuala Ketil graveyard controversy.

He plans to lead a group of Kuala Ketil residents and supporters to meet Azizan in Alor Setar on Sunday morning.

penang kedah timber logging azizan abdul razak 310708 02 Uthayakumar says he has already written to Azizan ( right ) seeking an appointment. The latter's office has yet to confirm the meeting.

With or without a prior appointment, Uthayakumar insists his ‘scheduled meeting' with Azizan will go on.

He said the HRP's stand was clear: they are against the 100-year-old Hindu cemetery in the former Batu Pekaka estate being either demolished or relocated.

"We want to the state government to preserve the graveyard because it represents the history of Tamil Hindu community in Kuala Ketil.

"(Would) the Kedah PAS-led government dare to demolish a Muslim cemetery or Chinese burial ground?" asked Uthayakumar, who is also the legal adviser for the outlawed Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf).

Cemetery land marked for development

The Kedah Pakatan Rakyat government wants to relocate the 0.8-acre Hindu graveyard to an existing nine-acre site at Padang Geh, about 5km away.

It plans to build the RM320 million Kolej Universiti Insaniah (KUIN), a project to be undertaken by government-linked company Bina Darulaman Bhd.

The cemetery was under the Kedah Development Corporation (PKNK) when the previous BN state government acquired part of the Batu Pekaka estate land to develop an industrial park about seven years ago.

kedah kuala ketil cemetery protest 121209 banner Last Saturday a large group of Kuala Ketil residents protested a pre-planned attempt to demolish the burial ground by the developer.

Kedah executive councillor in charge of tourism, Indian and Siamese affairs S Manikumar, who was at the scene, claimed he had the written consent of at least 42 of 80 Batu Pekaka grave owners approving the developer to unearth and relocate their respective entombment lots to Padang Geh.

However, he failed to produce any documented evidence when asked by reporters.

Later a handful of lot owners, who turned up at the cemetery, revealed that they have never given any written consent to remove their entombments although they had verbally agreed to it.

Uthayakumar said HRP was asked to intervene by the Kuala Ketil Tamilar Association (PTKK), led by V Raj Maniyan.

Raj Maniyan and several PTKK office bearers have lodged numerous police reports against the demolition of the cemetery.

The PTKK president lamented that the police had failed to take any action to protect the burial ground when the developer uprooted a few trees, causing damage to several tombs.

He said the police should investigate and nab the culprits under Section 297 of the Penal Code.

Under the law, he said a person could be jailed for at least a year for trespassing, damaging and desecrating the burial places of any religion.

However, when contacted, Kedah police chief Syed Ismail Syed Azizan denied the police failed to protect the cemetery.

He said police probes into the reports found the affected residents' complaints on damages to the tombs "were baseless"

"Our investigation disclosed that only some old trees were uprooted.

"No entombments were damaged or desecrated," he told Malaysiakini via telephone.

He stressed that the police would not tolerate any disturbances to law and order if anyone caused trouble when the graveyard is being relocated.