26-vote margin still fresh in my mind, says Subra The Star Wednesday September 9, 2009
PETALING JAYA: Datuk S. Subramaniam has hit out at his nemesis MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu for claiming that the 30 “pocketed votes” in the 1977 party elections was an impossibility.
The former party deputy president also brushed off Samy Vellu’s claim that he and Datuk V. Govindaraj were “pathological liars”.
“Govindaraj told me he did it. He was Samy Vellu’s man and led his campaign then.
“I can’t recall off-hand the total number of votes cast in 1977 but I know that the difference was 26. That is still fresh in my mind.”
Govindaraj told an English daily recently that he took the 30 votes cast for Subramaniam during the party polls that saw Samy Vellu defeating Subramaniam for the deputy president’s post by a mere 26 votes.
He was quoted as saying that he did it at the spur of the moment without instigation.
Expressing regret over his actions, Govindaraj, who was Samy Vellu’s one-time ally, said he realised that the party’s leadership in the last 30 years would have been different had he not taken the 30 votes.
Samy Vellu eventually became party president after the death of Tan Sri V. Manickavasagam in 1979.
Asked to comment on Samy Vellu’s retort that there were no unaccounted-for votes in the election, Subra-maniam said only the delegates list for the election would prove the total number of votes cast.
“Maybe Samy Vellu would like to swear in a temple that he is right.”
On Govindaraj’s actions, Subramaniam said he forgave him a long time ago and that they had remained good friends.
“But when I found out about the incident, it was past the time for any challenge or complaint.
“I realise that with the 30 votes I could have won but we can’t do anything about it now.
“Time has passed. At least he (Govindaraj) had the courage to admit it publicly and apologise for it.”