Recent from talks
Malaysian Indian Congress
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Malaysian Indian Congress
The Malaysian Indian Congress (abbrev: MIC; Malay: Kongres India Se-Malaysia)，formerly known as Malayan Indian Congress, is a Malaysian political party. It is one of the founding members of the coalition Barisan Nasional, previously known as the Alliance, which was in power from when the country achieved independence in 1957 until the elections in 2018. The party was among the first to fight for Malayan Independence and is one of the oldest parties in Malaysia.
The MIC was established in August 1946 to advocate for Indian independence from British colonial rule. After India gained its independence, MIC turned its focus to the struggle for the independence of Malaya (now Malaysia), which was achieved in 1957. It positioned itself to represent the Indian community in Malaya in the post-World War II development of the country. The MIC, the United Malays National Organisation and the Malaysian Chinese Association formed the National Alliance in 1954. The National Alliance incorporated additional parties and became the Barisan Nasional in 1973.
The MIC was once the largest party representing the Indian community,[further explanation needed] but has performed poorly in elections since 2008, losing out to Pakatan Harapan, which also represents majority of the Indian community.
In 2024, MIC expressed its support to a Unity Government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
John Thivy, the founder of the MIC, met Mahatma Gandhi at London while studying law. He was inspired by Gandhi's ideology and Nehru's vision and became determined to fight for Indian independence. He became actively involved in the Indian nationalist movement and returned to Malaya. He founded the Malaya Indian Congress (renamed Malaysian Indian Congress after the formation of the Federation of Malaysia in 1963) in August 1946, and was party president until 1947. The word 'Congress' in the party's name refers to the Indian National Congress, the party Mahatma Gandhi led to fight for Indian independence.
After India gained independence in 1947, the MIC changed its focus and started to fight for the independence of Malaya. Baba Budh Singh Ji became president of MIC in 1947. After World War II, the British had established the Malayan Union, unifying the Malay Peninsula under a single government to simplify administration. Although a majority of the Indian community supported the Malayan Union, the MIC did not. The Malayan Union was dissolved in 1948 after widespread Malay protests and replaced with the Federation of Malaya. The MIC later joined the All-Malaya Council of Joint Action under Tun Tan Cheng Lock in opposition to the Federation of Malaya Agreement.
K. Ramanathan became president in 1950. By this time, the MIC was the leading party representing Indians in Malaya. Ramanathan advocated for the relaxation of the language proficiency test as a prerequisite for citizenship for Indians, and urged Indians to obtain federal citizenship.
The MIC's fourth President, Kundan Lal Devaser, served from 1951 to 1955. It was during his period that MIC started to focus on the fight for Malayan independence.
Hub AI
Malaysian Indian Congress AI simulator
(@Malaysian Indian Congress_simulator)
Malaysian Indian Congress
The Malaysian Indian Congress (abbrev: MIC; Malay: Kongres India Se-Malaysia)，formerly known as Malayan Indian Congress, is a Malaysian political party. It is one of the founding members of the coalition Barisan Nasional, previously known as the Alliance, which was in power from when the country achieved independence in 1957 until the elections in 2018. The party was among the first to fight for Malayan Independence and is one of the oldest parties in Malaysia.
The MIC was established in August 1946 to advocate for Indian independence from British colonial rule. After India gained its independence, MIC turned its focus to the struggle for the independence of Malaya (now Malaysia), which was achieved in 1957. It positioned itself to represent the Indian community in Malaya in the post-World War II development of the country. The MIC, the United Malays National Organisation and the Malaysian Chinese Association formed the National Alliance in 1954. The National Alliance incorporated additional parties and became the Barisan Nasional in 1973.
The MIC was once the largest party representing the Indian community,[further explanation needed] but has performed poorly in elections since 2008, losing out to Pakatan Harapan, which also represents majority of the Indian community.
In 2024, MIC expressed its support to a Unity Government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
John Thivy, the founder of the MIC, met Mahatma Gandhi at London while studying law. He was inspired by Gandhi's ideology and Nehru's vision and became determined to fight for Indian independence. He became actively involved in the Indian nationalist movement and returned to Malaya. He founded the Malaya Indian Congress (renamed Malaysian Indian Congress after the formation of the Federation of Malaysia in 1963) in August 1946, and was party president until 1947. The word 'Congress' in the party's name refers to the Indian National Congress, the party Mahatma Gandhi led to fight for Indian independence.
After India gained independence in 1947, the MIC changed its focus and started to fight for the independence of Malaya. Baba Budh Singh Ji became president of MIC in 1947. After World War II, the British had established the Malayan Union, unifying the Malay Peninsula under a single government to simplify administration. Although a majority of the Indian community supported the Malayan Union, the MIC did not. The Malayan Union was dissolved in 1948 after widespread Malay protests and replaced with the Federation of Malaya. The MIC later joined the All-Malaya Council of Joint Action under Tun Tan Cheng Lock in opposition to the Federation of Malaya Agreement.
K. Ramanathan became president in 1950. By this time, the MIC was the leading party representing Indians in Malaya. Ramanathan advocated for the relaxation of the language proficiency test as a prerequisite for citizenship for Indians, and urged Indians to obtain federal citizenship.
The MIC's fourth President, Kundan Lal Devaser, served from 1951 to 1955. It was during his period that MIC started to focus on the fight for Malayan independence.
Recent media