Saravanan denies sending MIC members to rough up Tamil daily staff (Video)

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk M. Saravanan has refuted claims that he had sent MIC youth leaders from the Federal Territory to rough up personnel from a Tamil daily today.
The Youth and Sports deputy Minister said he had had gone to the Tamil Malar newspaper headquarters in Jalan Ipoh to prevent his partymen from making trouble.
"I went there after I got a call. I went there to stop my party men from doing anything untoward," he told theSun.
The MIC central committee member claimed in the last two days the Tamil Malar had been publishing fake news about Federal Territory MIC.
The paper had claimed in a series of reports that the MIC Wilayah state unit had over the last 20 years had not published its accounts and had been secretive about how the party's money was spent.
"The MIC Youth wanted to clarify the issue with them. They had an argument on the street, they were pushing each other but it was not a serious attack," Saravanan said.
He said the members did not go into the Tamil Malar office as it was locked at the time of the incident at about 12.30pm.
Saravanan said his people involved in the scuffle had made a police report at the Dang Wangi police station.
However, Tamil Malar journalist C. Christ who witnessed the event said they were taken aback by the MIC youth members show of force.
Christ claimed the MIC youth members were pushing Oms Thiagarajan and editor-in-chief K. Sarawaswathy.
Former MIC secretary-general A. K. Ramalingam said that Thiagarajan and Saraswathy were injured and were treated at the hospital.
He said both made police reports at the Dang Wangi police station.
"This is not the way to treat the media. Any unhappiness could have been dealt with without resorting to violence," he said during a press conference at the Tamil Malar headquarters.
Dang Wangi district police chief ACP Sukri Kaman confirmed police reports had been made and police were in the process of recording statements from both sides.