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PETALING JAYA: A group of non-Muslim PAS supporters is calling on all parties to stop playing on the issue that Kedah refuses to host the Thaipusam festival this year.
PAS Supporters Wing (DHPP) chief information officer Balachandran Gopal Krishnan said the decision was temporary due to the current Covid-19 pandemic.
He said the holidays would be restored in the next few years when the outbreak subsides.
“Let’s not politicize this issue. If the situation recovers in the next few years, I think Thaipusam will be declared a holiday again, ”the special officer of the Terengganu Menteri besar told FMT.
“We will even ask the Kedah government to make Thaipusam a public holiday when the Covid-19 is gone.”
He also said that the willingness of Hindus to accept the decision to cancel the holiday was “a great sacrifice.”
“This year, Hindus will make a great sacrifice … Everything happens for a reason,” he added.
The wing also defended the action of Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor stating that this does not mean that the rights of non-Muslims are denied, and emphasized that families can celebrate Thaipusam at home.
Balachandran called it a “difficult decision in a difficult situation”, saying that Sanusi would have made the same decision for other religious and cultural celebrations.
Commenting on a statement by DHPP chief N Balasubramaniam, who had previously urged Sanusi to review the decision to cancel the vacation, Balachandran said that Balasubramaniam was referring to the future in which the Covid-19 pandemic would already be under control.
“He (Balasubramaniam) also issued the statement to ensure that non-Muslims do not misunderstand the PAS,” Balachandran added.
Sanusi has been criticized by MIC and DAP leaders for not declaring a holiday for Thaipusam this year.
MIC Vice President M Saravanan said that no other state government, with the exception of the Kedah government led by PAS, had revoked the holiday.
Thaipusam is a state holiday in Johor, Kuala Lumpur, Negeri Sembilan, Penang, Perak, Putrajaya, and Selangor. It has been observed as an optional or occasional state holiday in Kedah since 2013.
