The People's Progressive Party (PPP) has called on PKR vice-president N Surendran to prove his claim that there are 300,000 stateless Indians in the country.

"We have told Surendran (to) prove that there are 300,000 stateless Indians. Don't just pluck the figure from the air but give us evidence.

ppp interlok chandrakumanan 060111 "Don't keep on cheating the poor people for your own political agenda," PPP information chief A Chandrakumanan ( left ) said in a statement today.

Chandrakumanan was responding to Surendran's statement earlier today accusing Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak of lying in saying that this figure of stateless Indian Malaysians in the country was exaggerated.

If indeed the figure touted by Surendran was true, Chandrakumanan said, PKR should submit those names to the government so that their citizenship could be sorted out.

"Rather than harping on like a old record, give us the name list of these 300,000 stateless Indians so that the matter can be addressed properly - or else this will be like another Kampung Buah Pala issue, a promise never fulfilled," he said.

Kampung Buah Pala was an Indian village in Gelugor in Pakatan Rakyat-led Penang that was evicted to make way for development, despite an earlier promise that there would be no eviction.

Chandrakumanan also rubbished PKR's claim that it could resolve the stateless Indian issue within 30 days.

He said if the 300,000 figure was true, this would mean issuing 10,000 MyKads a day in the allotted time-frame.

"My advice to PKR and (its supremo) Anwar Ibrahim: do not keep on playing with the sentiments of the Indians and their issues if you are sincere in wanting to help them," he added.