Minister refutes suicidal claims

PETALING JAYA: Deputy Education Minister Datuk P. Kamalanathan yesterday clarified that he had never said or confirmed that M. Vasanthapiriya had a record of harming herself.

He explained that during a press conference, a reporter told him that there were rumours that the girl had in the past allegedly attempted to harm herself.

“All I said was that I had also heard similar rumours and I will leave that to the Penang Education Department and the police to investigate.

“I never once said the girl had slit her wrist. I had confirmed this with the reporter concerned. This matter has been deliberately blown out of proportion by irresponsible individuals who are out to spoil my image as the election gets closer. I reiterate my request for all quarters to be patient and wait for the police and the relevant authorities to complete their investigations.”

On Feb 1, Vasanthapiriya, died after a seven-day coma following an attempt to commit suicide after being accused of stealing a teacher’s handphone on Jan 24.

Following the alleged statement by Kamalanathan, several quarters, including Vasanthapiriya’s father R. Muniandy, 54, expressed their disappointment with the deputy minister, saying he had no right to discuss the victim’s mental state in public.

“I would never say such a thing to hurt or upset the family. The matter was taken out of context and like I said earlier, it is best everyone refrain from speaking about it and wait for the authorities to complete their report.”