The party leader, who asked to remain anonymous, said staying out of the state elections meant that MIC would be relinquishing the Jeram Padang seat in Negeri Sembilan.

With MIC having held the seat since 1995, he said, the Barisan Nasional component should be defending the seat to represent the constituency for a sixth consecutive term.

“Why aren’t we contesting in Jeram Padang? The MIC central working committee must explain why we won’t be defending the seat,” he told FMT.

He said the partnership between BN and Pakatan Harapan for the state elections would have boosted MIC’s chances of retaining the seat.

In the 14th general election, MIC retained the Jeram Padang seat when L Manickam defeated his closest contender, independent candidate S Surash, with a majority of 1,062 votes.

Surash, who now leads Negeri Sembilan Bersatu’s associate wing, has voiced his intention to contest for the seat again, this time on a Perikatan Nasional ticket.

Aside from Jeram Padang, MIC currently holds five other state seats – Sabai (Pahang), Gadek (Melaka), Kemelah, Kahang and Tenggaroh (Johor).

Pahang held its election for state seats simultaneously with the 15th general election, while Melaka and Johor state elections were held in November 2021 and March 2022, respectively.

The MIC leader said not defending the Jeram Padang seat reflects badly on the party’s position in the unity government. He called for a special general meeting to be held to hear the grassroots’ view on MIC’s future.

“A general meeting is the best way to decide whether MIC should stick with BN and the unity government, or leave,” he said.

Meanwhile, political analyst Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said it was not mandatory for BN to allocate the Jeram Padang seat to MIC, claiming it was Umno supporters who helped the party retain the seat in 2018.

He said MIC would not have been able to defend the seat if it were to depend on its supporters alone.