Hindraf, PKR meet after long winter

(Malaysiakini) Hindraf and PKR have taken the first step toward bridging their differences, following a rift after the March 2008 general election.

Hindraf advisor N Ganesan met several PKR leaders last week in Kuala Lumpur.

After the meeting, Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim hailed it as a positive step in breaking the ice.

"We would like to go through the various steps of understanding and formulation. We think that the meeting has already broken the ice in terms of trying to know where we should be going,” he said.

"I think it is a very positive meeting and we should continue to reach to a level that the Malaysian people deserve.”

Other PKR leaders present were secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution, vice-president Tian Chua and Subang MP R Sivarasa.

The meeting was held following an appeal for engagement by P Waythamoorthy, who has taken over the reins of Hindraf from his brother Uthayakumar.

In the 2008 polls, Hindraf had been a significant force in gathering the support of Indian Malaysians for Pakatan Rakyat.

However, Uthayakumar accused Pakatan of not addressing the needs of the Indian poor after gaining power in several states and reducing the BN’s majority in Parliament.

Their relationship had further soured after Uthayakumar announced that Hindraf, through its political entity, the Human Rights Party, would contest the next general election against both Pakatan and BN.