A former leader of the PKR Bayan Baru division has denied that he will be quitting the party to rejoin the BN, where he was once a member of two of its component parties.

The denial comes in the midst of intense speculation that M Nyana Segaran, the former vice-chairperson of the division, will be handing in his application, along with many others, to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak at a cultural event in Penang on Saturday.

penang anti isa forum 150908 m nyana segaran Talk about Nyana Segaran's ( right ) defection spread when he began to issue invitation letters to members of the public to attend an April 2 event themed ‘Indian Cultural Carnival'.

He signed the letter as chairperson of the Penang Indian Development Organisation (Pido), the event organiser.

Top BN leaders, including Najib and federal ministers Koh Tsu Koon and Mohamed Nor Yaacob, are expected to grace the event at the Penang International Sports Arena in Bayan Baru.

Najib's wife Rosmah Mansor will be attending the event.

Najib and Rosmah have been invited to launch the Penang 1Malaysia football team led by Football Association of Penang (FAP) president Zahrain Mohd Hashim, the Independent MP for Bayan Baru.

The FAP event will be held at the Equatorial Hotel, on the same day as the cultural carnival.

Posters of the event, which about 10,000 people are expected to attend, have been distributed to the public, with Nyana Segaran's mobile number listed as a contact person.

'No question of quitting PKR '

When contacted, the former MIC leader said he does not intend to quit PKR. He had contested the PKR Bayan Baru division chairperson's post last year and was defeated by Pantai Jerejak assemblyperson Sim Tze Tsin.

Nyana Segaran also denied that the cultural event he and his team are organising has anything to do with politics.

NONE "It is purely a non-political event. The organising committee and its members have told me that they do not want politics to come in," he said.

Talk about Nyana Segaran leaving PKR started after Sim, a former political aide to PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, held a press conference to warn members that a former division leader was going around enticing members to join BN.

Sim had said that the "disgruntled" leader who lost in the party's elections last year, would be "pulling his political stunt" during the 13th general election, which is not expected until 2013, but is highly speculated to be held this year.

Nyana Segaran dismissed any question of party hopping, even if he has been disappointed with the outcome of the last divisional election.

Several members have called for a re-election in that division, claiming there were several irregularities in the election process. The PKR election committee has yet to respond to their complaints.

On another matter, Nyana Segaran, once a Gerakan member, said he is surprised that Penang Hindu Priests Association chairperson S Dhinabalan has quit PKR .

"I didn't know, and I am surprised to hear about it," he said, adding he was not involved in the matter.

On Sunday, the group, reportedly comprising 200 of the 280 members of the association, announced their departure from PKR, citing disappointment with the party for allegedly ignoring the plight of the Indian community.

However, PKR said Dhinabalan had left the party last year, along with Zahrain, who he had once served as personal assistant.