MIC Youth has expressed disappointment over the appointment of P Waythamoorthy as a deputy minister, instead of faithful partners of BN.

"By appointing the guy who tarnished the country's image... (this) will weaken component parties like MIC and other Indian representatives in BN.

NONE"The prime minister can even consider members from the Indian Progressive Front (IPF) - who have been loyal to BN for the last 25 years - for senior positions in the government.

"I strongly feel that there are many other better choices within BN than Waythamoorty," said MIC Youth chief T Mohan (right) in a press release today.

Waythomoorthy was among the surprise entrants in the Prime Minister's Department that had been announced yesterday.

Mohan said Waythamoorthy's appointment was never discussed with MIC - a BN partner of 55 years - which left a question mark over the party's status in BN.

"The question is, how far is BN being respectful towards MIC?" he asked.


Setting a bad precedent Mohan also suggested that Waythamoorthy's 21-day hunger strike earlier this year was not genuine.

"My question now is if someone (has been) fasting for more than 21 days with Teh 'O' and biscuits, would the person get a (deputy) minister position? 

"We should not allow this kind of drama, if not it will become a culture in the future," he said.

After returning from exile on Aug 1 last year, Waythamoorthy became one of the Hindraf's main movers and tried to get both BN and Pakatan Rakyat to endorse the movement's blueprint for the Indian community.

After failing to gain traction from either coalition, Waythamoorthy went on a hunger strike. Following this, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak held a meeting with Hindraf.

Two weeks after Parliament was dissolved, Waythamoorthy - on behalf of Hindraf - signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with BN and pledged to support the coalition.-malaysiakini