PENANG,MALAYSIA, February 7, 2017 (by Predeep Nambiar, Malaysia Today): The Penang Chettiars have refused to have their silver Thaipusam chariot run together with the hilltop Murugan Temple’s new golden chariot on the eve of Thaipusam Day, which falls on Feb 9. The Penang Hindu Endowments Board (PHEB), which manages the hilltop temple, said the inaugural golden chariot would now leave at 5am, 90 minutes before the Chettiars’ silver chariot at 6.30am.
“The PHEB had asked for all the chariots to run at the same time, but were refused any form of coordination or cooperation,” Ramasamy said at a press conference in Komtar today. Lord Murugan temple’s new chariot is to correct ‘injustice’ done to locals, says Penang Hindu Endowments Board chairman P Ramasamy. However, he said police had assured the board of their full cooperation to ensure both chariots run smoothly on Thaipusam.