Dr. Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj ( Tamil: மைக்கல் ஜெயகுமார்) (born 28 March 1955) is a

Malaysian Malaysian may refer to: * Something from or related to Malaysia, a country in Southeast Asia * Malaysian Malay, a dialect of Malay language spoken mainly in Malaysia * Malaysian people, people who are identified with the country of Malaysia regar ...

politician and currently as the chairperson of Socialist Party of Malaysia. He served in the

Parliament of Malaysia The Parliament of Malaysia ( ms, Parlimen Malaysia) is the national legislature of Malaysia, based on the Westminster system. The bicameral parliament consists of the Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives, lit. "People's Assembly") and the D ...

as Member of Parliament for the

Sungai Siput Sungai Siput (U) ( Jawi: سوڠاي سيڤوت; Tamil: சுங்கை சீப்புட்) (English: Snail River) is a town and mukim in Kuala Kangsar District, Perak, Malaysia, covering 155.141 hectares, 61.5% of the total area of Ku ...

constituency in

Perak Perak () is a state of Malaysia on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula. Perak has land borders with the Malaysian states of Kedah to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kelantan and Pahang to the east, and Selangor to the south. Thailand's ...

from 2008 to 2018. Jeyakumar is a prominent member of the Socialist Party of Malaysia (PSM) but was elected to Parliament on the ticket of the

People's Justice Party The People's Justice Party ( ms, Parti Keadilan Rakyat , often known simply as KEADILAN or PKR) is a reformist political party in Malaysia, formed in 2003 by a merger of the National Justice Party and the older Malaysian People's Party. The p ...

(PKR) in the

Pakatan Rakyat The People's Alliance ( ms, Pakatan Rakyat; abbrev: PR) was an informal Malaysian political coalition and successor to Barisan Alternatif (BA). The political coalition was formed by the People's Justice Party (PKR), Democratic Action Party ( ...

(PR) opposition coalition. His win in the 2008 general election unseated

Samy Vellu Tun Samy Vellu s/o Sangalimuthu ( ta, சாமிவேலு சங்கிலிமுத்து, Cāmivēlu Caṅkilimuttu; 8 March 1936 – 15 September 2022) was a Malaysian politician who served as Minister of Works from June 1983 ...

; the long-serving President of the

Malaysian Indian Congress The Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC; ta, மலேசிய இந்திய காங்கிரஸ், Malēciya Intiya Kāṅkiras; formerly known as Malayan Indian Congress) is a Malaysian political party. It is one of the founding membe ...

(MIC). Samy Vellu had previously defeated Jeyakumar in Sungai Siput in the

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school s ...

and

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

general elections. Jeyakumar successfully retained his seat in the

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

general election. However, he contested under PSM's own ticket and lost his seat in the

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

general election, garnering just 3.52% of the votes cast and losing his deposit.

Detention under Emergency Ordinance

In the run-up to Bersih 2.0 rally for electoral reform in Malaysia, Jeyakumar and other PSM members were arrested in June 2011, accused of trying to wage war against the king and revive Communism. In July 2011, he was arrested under the

Emergency Ordinance The Emergency (Public Order and Crime Prevention) Ordinance, 1969 ( ms, Ordinan Darurat (Ketenteraman Awam dan Mencegah Jenayah), 1969), commonly abbreviated as the Emergency Ordinance (EO), was a Malaysian law whose most well-known provision all ...

(EO), which allows for indefinite detention without trial. He remained in solitary confinement until July 2011, spending a total of 28 days in detention. Jeyakumar credits his release to the support of the people.

Personal life

Jeyakumar also practices as a medical doctor by profession.

Election results

Note: ¹ & ² Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj is a member of

PSM PSM, an acronym, may refer to: Organizations * Sepaktakraw Association of Malaysia ( ms, Persatuan Sepaktakraw Malaysia; PSM), a national governing body in Malaysia. * Pakistan School Muscat, a Pakistani co-educational institute in Oman * Palest ...

, amid contested under the tickets of DAP in the

election and PKR in the

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

and

elections.

References

1955 births Living people People from Johor Malaysian politicians of Indian descent Members of the Dewan Rakyat People's Justice Party (Malaysia) politicians Socialist Party of Malaysia politicians Malaysian socialists 21st-century Malaysian politicians {{Malaysia-politician-stub

Detention under Emergency Ordinance

Personal life

Election results

See also

References