Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe by Email Apply for land titles, temples told MIC: State has never rejected applications
By CLARA CHOOI
Perak MIC chairman Datuk G. Rajoo said he was confident the state government would not reject their applications, as it had not done so before.
“Since 2000, the state has issued land titles to 38 temples,” he told reporters at his Deepavali open house in Ipoh recently.
His comments came following the demolition of a temple in Shah Alam by the Selangor Government on Oct 30 that sparked off a controversy.
On the 38 temples issued land titles, Rajoo said, some had been allowed to remain in their current location while others were given alternative plots of between 0.404ha and 0.808ha.
“The state government also gives an RM300,000 annual allocation for the maintenance of the legalised temples,” he said.
Despite this, he said, there were still so many illegal Hindu temples in Perak.
“This is because the temple committees are not willing to move from their current locations. They do not apply for land titles as they may be asked to relocate to a new spot,” he said.
He added that in Ipoh alone, at least 400 Hindu temples were squatting illegally on government land.
“Still, Perak has never demolished temples to make way for development,” he said, adding that with negotiations, such problems could be resolved amicably.
“However, we would like to urge all temple committees to legalise their temples and apply for the grants.
“They must register their details with the Malaysia Hindu Sangam and their applications can be sent to the state government through the Perak MIC,” he said.
Earlier at the open house, Rajoo donated RM5,000 each to six orphanages in Ipoh.
