Johor Sultan attends Deepavali event

KLUANG: Sultan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Almarhum Sultan Iskandar yesterday joined in a Deepavali dinner celebration hosted by Federation of Johor State Indian Organisation (Gappin) at Dataran Tasik Kluang.
Over 1,000 people joined in the celebration organised by Gappin, an organisation with membership comprising 166 registered Indian NGOs in Johor.
Sultan Ibrahim said celebrations like this help to strengthen the relationship between the rakyat and himself.
"I hope similar celebrations will be held in conjunction with other festivals such as Christmas, Hari Raya, and Chinese New Year," he said.
"Issues of Muslims celebrating other festivals should not arise because we are not following the practice nor its teaching but celebrating it as a sign of respect to our fellow community members," Sultan Ibrahim said.
"Friendly, compromising and respectful is the culture of Johoreans. Don't be divided by political parties or for self interest of certain individuals. To me, those with the intention to divide the rakyat, I advise them not to come to Johor because we have no place to house such people," he added.
"The Indian community must stand united as they are a small community or their voice might disappear and they may be left out if they are not united," he added.
Gappin president Thenarasoo Subbiah thanked the Sultan for his presence and believes this is the first ever public function to have his presence.
"Our community pledges to continue supporting the royal family," he said.