IPOH: Two groups claiming to be leaders of the Perak MIC Youth Brigade were caught in a war of words after one of them dissolved the state’s 500-member strong movement.

The drama began shortly after national MIC youth information chief K. Rajakumar called a press conference to announce that he, as the state coordinator of the Perak MIC Youth Brigade, had dissolved the movement as of yesterday.

Rajakumar, 42, said the move was to protest against MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu’s decision to remove him as a national youth council member because he had exceeded the age of 41.

“This is unfair and unconstitutional. The age limit in the MIC Youth section by-laws had never been put into practice,” he told reporters here yesterday.

He also claimed that MIC Putera and Puteri leaders had already exceeded the age limit.

He pointed out that he was 40 when he won the post in 2006, and should serve the full term until May 2009.

Rajakumar also claimed the state’s brigade was dissolved as a show of support for national party Youth chief S. A. Vigneswaran who was also asked to step down because he had passed the age limit of 40.

Also present were S. Pannir, who identified himself as the Perak MIC Youth Brigade chief, and some 20 other members.

However an hour later, word went out that Rajakumar and Pannir were “impostors” and that the dissolving of the Perak MIC Youth Brigade was invalid.

Perak MIC chairman Datuk G. Rajoo contacted the media to insist that P. Muniandy was the real chief and not Pannir.

“They have no right to dissolve the Perak brigade. How many members of the brigade turned up?

“Pannir is only an honorary Perak MIC Youth Brigade member and Rajakumar is only the national MIC Youth information chief,” said Rajoo, who said the brigade still supported Samy Vellu.

In an immediate reply, Rajakumar claimed that Muniandy had resigned three months ago and that it was Vigneswaran who had appointed Pannir as the new chief.

In Alor Star, MIC Kedah dismissed claims that its Putera Brigade had collapsed following the resignation of over 1,000 members.

State MIC chief Datuk V. Saravanan said: “From what I heard, about 100 to 200 Putera members have quit. And that number is negligible.”

Saravanan said this in response to former state MIC Putera Brigade chief M. Magendiran’s claim that the brigade had ceased to exist following the mass resignation.

The brigade members had allegedly quit en masse in protest against Vigneswaran's removal.

The MIC Youth Brigade was formed in 2003 to help Indian youths.