He said the report by Malaysiakini was “false” and “ill intended”.

In a statement today, he said: “(I) did not speak with Malaysiakini or any of its reporters or journalists on this matter.”

However, Malaysiakini later said a press release in Tamil had been sent by email yesterday from an aide in Waythamoorthy’s office. The press statement was emailed mainly to Tamil news outlets, Malaysiakini said, and it had stated that the comments were made by Waythamoorthy in an interview with a BernamaTamil news programme.

Malaysiakini also quoted an aide to Waythamoorthy as saying the statement was only intended for the Tamil press.

In yesterday’s report, Waytha, who is the minister in charge of national unity, was said to have labelled the teaching of khat or Jawi calligraphy in Tamil schools as unrealistic and unnecessary.

He was reported as saying that the government should instead find ways to reduce the burden on schoolchildren, while looking into other skills and tackling problems such as unemployment among graduates.

According to the report, he also claimed that many other ministers similarly disagreed with the education ministry’s decision to introduce khat lessons in the Year 4 Bahasa Melayu syllabus for vernacular schools next year.

The ministry initially said that six pages of the Bahasa Melayu textbook would be dedicated to the teaching of khat. However, this was reduced to three following protests from Chinese and Tamil interest groups and members of DAP.

Lessons will also be optional, with no examination component.

This report has been updated to include Malaysiakini’s response.