KUALA LUMPUR – An Education Ministry officer who was involved in the banning of Tamil songs at a national-level Tamil Language Carnival event in Penang has been transferred to a different department.
The matter was revealed by Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek’s aide Thiyagaraj Sankaranarayanan, who also dismissed allegations that the ministry had swept the issue under the rug since “appropriate action” has been taken.
The officer’s particulars – such as the name and rank – however, remain unknown. It is also unclear where the ministerial personnel will be transferred to and whether any punishments were imposed.
“The officer responsible has been transferred to another department. Claims that the ministry did not take action on other officers who ordered the matter are baseless.
“We have to be aware that any statements on this matter will affect further investigations by the ministry,” Thiyagaraj said in a Facebook post yesterday.
He also asserted that the government will not “protect” those who played a role in the incident.
Previously, several MPs and political parties had urged the ministry to investigate the incident involving the ban on the performance of Kadavul Valthu and Tamil Valthu at the opening ceremony of the carnival hosted by the ministry at a hotel in Kepala Batas.
Kadavul Valthu is a song about Hindu deities while Tamil Valthu is a song related to the Tamil language.
Following the backlash, the Penang education department said that the ministry has never banned any traditional song performances at language, arts and cultural events, while Fadhlina had also apologised to the Indian community over the incident. – December 7, 2023