A victory for Abdullah's party is widely expected but it is not known as yet if it would capture the two-thirds majority, which it has done since 1957. The doubts have been sparked by a public show of discontent by the ethnic Indians who are demanding racial equality since the November 25 banned rally by more than 20,000 people who for the first time in decades held anti-government protest in this Malay majority Muslim nation.
Five ethnic Indian leaders, detained indefinitely under a draconian security law in Malaysia for organising a rally to demand racial equality, on Tuesday failed to get any reprieve from the high court, which turned down their application for freedom.
Hindraf's A Sivanesan is among the 11 lawyers contesting for the opposition DAP. He will face Malaysian Indian Congress vice president SVeerasingam in Sundkai seat in Perak state. M Manoharan, who is currently held under the draconian Internal Security Act that allows indefinite detention without trial along with four other Hindraf members for organising the November 25 rally of ethnic Indians here, is also in the fray.
Police said it detained at least 20 supporters of the non-governmental Hindu Rights Force (Hindraf), which organised the rally, days after announcing plans that its members would march to the Parliament house along with a group of children led by the organisation's chief Wayathamoorthy's five-year-old daughter Vvaishnnavi.Hindraf member and lawyer N Surendran, however, claimed that at least 60 people, including two leaders of the organisation, have been detained.
Ending months of speculation, Malaysian Premier Abdullah Badawi on Wednesday dissolved the Parliament to pave the way for snap elections, in which his ruling coalition is expected to emerge as a winner but with a reduced majority. Abdullah said the Malaysian King has given his approval for dissolving the Parliament so that the elections could be held early.
Referring to a comment in a blog that Abdullah had asked him to resign and not seek re-election, Vellu said those spreading such 'lies' on the Internet and via SMS were 'mad'.
The first meeting of Trade Negotiating Committee on signing a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement started in Kuala Lumpur.
The five members of the non-governmental Hindu Rights Action Forum, who were detained last December under the Internal Security Act that allows indefinite detention without trial, may not get a fair hearing in this country, the International Federation of Human Rights said.
Every year, at least a million Hindus visit Batu Caves on this day, but this year the crowd seemed to be much lesser in number. Other than the boycott call by Indian activists, rumours that violence could break out also kept people away.
Five ethnic Indian leaders, detained by the Malaysian government under a draconian security law, on Monday began a hunger strike to protest their incarceration and the alleged marginalisation of the community in the multi-racial country.
In a major concession to the agitated ethnic Indian community in Malaysia, the government on Sunday declared the Hindu festival of Thaipusam a national holiday.
Malaysia's highest court on Thursday rejected on technical grounds an appeal by an ethnic Indian Hindu woman to stop her Muslim convert husband from seeking a divorce in the Islamic 'Shariah' court, while upholding the man's right to change the religion of their youngest son.
The task of monitoring has been given to Works Minister Samy Vellu, who said no temple, whether legal or illegally built, will be demolished without a thorough check and discussions with his Malaysian Indian Congress, a component of the ruling coalition.
The application for M Manoharan, a lawyer belonging to the Hindu Rights Action Force, which is spearheading protests by ethnic Indians, was rejected by the Ipoh High Court judge on the grounds that the copy of the detention order had not been certified.
The responsibility of maintaining peace and harmony in the multi-racial country did not rest on his shoulders alone but on all communities, he said.
"It is timely for the prime minister to set up a department to look into non-Muslim affairs. What we have in the prime minister's department now is a Muslim affairs department," A Rajaretnam, Secretary of the Federation of Malaysian Indian Organisation, told media persons.
Hardening his stand against anti-government protestors including the ethnic Indians, Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmed Badawi on Monday said he would "sacrifice" public freedom in order to maintain national security in the country rocked by a spate of agitations.
Having "exhausted" all legal avenues and other channels against alleged marginalisation, Hindraf, spearheading the protests by ethnic Indians in Malaysia, has appealed to New Delhi to stop the "ethnic cleansing" in the Muslim-dominated nation.
Malaysia's Inspector-General of Police Musa Hassan said recent investigations have revealed that the campaign group, Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), "has been actively canvassing for support and assistance from terrorist groups".
Malaysian police on Sunday fired teargas and water cannon to quell a protest by thousands of ethnic Indians who defied stern government warnings to stay away from a rally in support of a $4 trillion lawsuit that blames Britain for their economic woes.
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