PUTRAJAYA: What started out as a peaceful gathering to get a 17-year-old girl back in school ended with a scuffle between two groups that left two people injured in front of the Prime Minister's office.

The MIC Youth and several non-governmental organisations had gathered at the entrance to show their support for Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and the Government over issues relating to the Indian community.

Physical violence: A policeman rushing to stop a fight between members of the two groups in Putrajaya yesterday.

A PKR group had also gathered there to deliver a protest note over the way B. Reshina, a Form Five student, was stopped from attending school because she did not have proper documents.

Both groups started shouting at each other, culminating in the scuffle, which left Puchong PKR branch chief S. Murali and K. Gunasekaran injured.

Police had to intervene to separate the groups.

It was they who attacked us first and we had to defend ourselves. - T. Mohan

PKR vice-president N. Surendran claimed that the situation was started by the MIC group members, who attempted to attack Reshina.

He said PKR was only interested in getting a MyKad for Reshina, who “is a symbol for the hundreds of thousands of stateless Indians who have yet to get their identity cards”.

MIC Youth chief T. Mohan said one of the PKR members started the scuffle by taunting them.

“It was they who attacked us first and we had to defend ourselves,” he said.

Mohan said the problem of stateless Indians was not because the Government had neglected them, but rather due to various technicalities, including parents not registering the birth of their children.

He said the MIC had already settled 9,529 such cases and promised to take up Reshina's case with the National Registration Department.

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