Former Bar Council chairperson Dr Cyrus V Das today vehemently denied allegations of colluding with MIC president S Samy Vellu in the Maika shares scandal 11 years ago.

"I was no longer on Maika Holdings board of directors as I had left in early 1992 before the problem started," he told malaysiakini .

He said it was a "complete smear and a falsehood against someone acting in a professional capacity", referring to him acting as Samy Vellu's lawyer.

"I am will take appropriate legal action against those who made those allegations (against me)."

Das was responding to allegations of illegal activities and misappropriation of funds made against him by a group of Maika shareholders in a police report lodged yesterday.

The group accused him of conspiring with Samy Vellu in the Maika shares scandal, and thus failing to discharge his fiduciary duty as a director of Maika Holdings in protecting the interest of the shareholders.

Das said he was only Maika director for "a few months" and that he had resigned months before the scandal broke.

"I am incensed over these allegations," he added.

Erupted again

The Maika scandal, involving the diversion of millions of ringgit worth of Telekom Malaysia shares allocated by the government to benefit the Malaysian Indian community, caused an uproar back in 1992, prompting a probe by the Anti-Corruption Agency.

Samy Vellu was cleared of any wrongdoing or involvement in the scandal by the ACA.

The scandal erupted again last month following heated exchanges between the MIC leader and his IPF counterpart MG Pandithan.

Taking the cue from former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad who had called for political veterans to make way for new blood, Pandithan urged Samy Vellu to retire from politics.

But the call was met with a returning salvo from the seasoned Malaysian Indian leader, leading to more verbal exchanges.

Since the issue re-surfaced, Maika shareholders have lodged several police reports against the company and the MIC chief, as well as seeking legal redress .

They have also appealed to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to intervene and resolve the 11-year scandal which has left the shareholders in a limbo without any returns to their investment.

Maika Holdings has since denied allegations of misappropriation of funds, claiming instead that these were attempts at tarnishing its image in order to buy its shares at a cheaper price.