Pressure is mounting on Keadilan's leadership to resolve an internal crisis involving its Indian Malaysian members after a Youth leader urged them to quit the party en bloc .

Party president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has promised "to get to the bottom of this" but stressed that the crisis should not be termed as an "Indian problem".

"What has happened is regrettable. We are trying to promote multi-racial policies and we want to handle this problem as a Malaysian problem," she said when contacted recently.

On Monday, Youth exco S Manikavasagam announced his decision to quit and urged other Indian Malaysian members to follow him.

He claimed the party did not value their contribution and said he was particularly piqued by Youth deputy chief Saifuddin Nasution Ismail's recent speech which attacked supreme council member N Gobalakrishnan.

He also criticised the leadership for not appointing an Indian Malaysian vice-president as promised.

However, Saifuddin refuted the charges and instead blamed Manikavasagam for slacking in his duty to woo more Indian Malaysians to join the party.

Offers from MIC

Meanwhile, Manikavasagam when contacted yesterday said he has decided to remain in the party but will relinquish his Youth exco post.

He said the decision was made following a meeting with Wan Azizah, where he "told her everything".

Despite receiving offers from MIC leaders to join the ruling coalition component party, he stressed that Keadilan will be his "first and last" party.

Manikavasagam also warned his superiors not to take any disciplinary action against him.

"All the Indian Malaysian members are behind me. If disciplinary action is taken against me, they will resign en bloc . We have already prepared our letters," he said.

The crisis has prompted Gobalakrishnan to organise a meeting for all the Indian Malaysian members in the party in Kuala Lumpur on Nov 17.

When contacted yesterday, he said that some 100 members are expected to attend the meet which will also see the presence of Wan Azizah.

"We want to hear all their grouses. We will have a heart-to-heart talk and I will take up the issues to the supreme council," he said.

Not aware

However, the party secretary-general Sahri Bahri claimed that he was not aware of the meeting.

"As far as the party is concerned, we have adequate avenues to address the grouses, we could do it either at the branch or division levels.

"We also have the Community Relations bureau to address non-Malay problems and coordinate activities for non-Malays," he told malaysiakini .

In an unrelated development, Keadilan said it has received an official letter from DAP requesting to hold discussions on the upcoming general election.

In a press statement today, Wan Azizah said the party will discuss the request with other Barisan Alternatif parties first.

DAP was a member of the opposition coalition but left last September after crossing swords with PAS over the latter's ambition to form an Islamic state.

The letter from DAP was signed by the party secretary-general Kerk Kim Hock.