Kjitcollege: added first details basic info.

2026-04-29T11:24:19Z

added first details basic info.

New page

{{Short description|Malaysian politician}}
{{Distinguish|S. Manikavasagam}}
{{Indian patronymic|Manickavasagam Pillai|V.}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2026}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix = [[Malay titles|Yang Berbahagia Tan Sri Dato' Seri]]
| name = V. Manickavasagam
| honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=MYS|size=100%|PMN|SPMS|JMN}} [[List of post-nominal letters (Selangor)|PJK]]
| image =
| image_size =
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1926|10|04|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Klang District|Klang]], [[Selangor]], [[Federated Malay States]], [[British Malaya]] (now [[Malaysia]])
| death_date = {{death date and age|1979|10|12|1926|10|4|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Kuala Lumpur]], [[Malaysia]]
| office = 6th President of the [[Malaysian Indian Congress]]
| term_start = 30 June 1973
| term_end = 12 October 1979
| predecessor = [[V. T. Sambanthan]]
| successor = [[Samy Vellu]]
| constituency =
| constituency_MP2 =
| term_start2 =
| term_end2 =
| majority2 =
| predecessor2 =
| successor2 =
| office3 =
| term_start3 =
| term_end3 =
| predecessor3 =
| successor3 =
| constituency3 =
| party = [[Malaysian Indian Congress]] (MIC)
| occupation = Politician
| relations =
| alma_mater =
| spouse =
| children =
| website =
| footnotes =
| native_name_lang = [[Tamil]]
| native_name = மாணிக்கவாசகம் பிள்ளை
}}

'''V. Manickavasagam Pillai''' ({{langx|ta|மாணிக்கவாசகம் பிள்ளை|Māṇikkavācakam piḷḷai}}; 4 October 1926 – 12 October 1979) was a [[Malaysian people|Malaysian]] [[politician]] who served as [[Minister of Communications and Multimedia (Malaysia)|Minister of Communications]]. He was a member and served as 6th President of the [[Malaysian Indian Congress]] (MIC), a component party of the ruling [[Barisan Nasional]] (BN) coalition from June 1973 to his death in October 1979.

==President of MIC==
Manickavasagam became president of MIC as a result of increased resistance of the grassroot members to [[V.T. Sambanthan|Tun V.T. Sambanthan]]'s style of leadership, who had been president of the party for 18 years.

Under Manickavasagam's leadership, the MIC was put on a strong footing with buildings, offices and staff in various parts of the country and the party system organised and its capacity to deal with issues enhanced.

It was during this period that the MIC, as member of the [[Alliance Party (Malaysia)|Alliance]], became part of the [[Barisan Nasional]]. The party sponsored the Nesa Multipurpose Cooperative and the MIC Unit Trust as part of its programme for economic ventures, and also set up the MIC Education Fund for members' children and the Malaysian Indian Scholarship Fund for higher education as well as acquiring an Institute for training Indians in technical and trade skills.

===Blue Book===
Manickavasagam had a vision for the [[Malaysian Indian]] community. He organised the First Indian Economic Seminar and as a result the ''Blue Book'' came about. It was a development plan for the economic growth of the Indian community.

The Blue Book was an orchestrated effort of a think-tank of top Indian business, political and education leaders collaborating to augment the future of the [[Malaysian Indian]] community. Maika Holdings and Maju Institute of Education and Development (MIED) and others are a direct result of the Blue Book.<sup>[http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/41975]</sup>

===Infusing new blood===
When Manickavasagam became president of the [[Malaysian Indian Congress]], he decided to introduce new faces to the party in leadership positions. This was the time when [[S. Subramaniam]], [[K. Pathmanaban]], a Harvard MBA holder, and several others entered the political arena to infuse new blood into MIC, and Manickavasagam gave them preference. They were young, well-educated and ambitious but lacked grassroots experience.

This made [[Samy Vellu|S. Samy Vellu]], who was then MIC vice-president, bitter as he felt he was being sidelined. Samy Vellu was one of the five leaders who dared defy former president [[V.T. Sambanthan]] and propel Manickavasagam to the presidency of the party.

Subramaniam, then the secretary general of MIC, was hand-picked by Manickavasagam to become deputy president and succeed him. However, Samy Vellu fought back, literally, and in the 1977 party elections he managed to beat Subramaniam by a mere 26 votes to become the Deputy President of MIC.

==Death==
Manickavasagam died in 1979 while still in office. His deputy, [[S. Samy Vellu]] was made acting president of MIC and remained president until 6 December 2010.

==Honours==
===Honours of Malaysia===
* {{Flag|Malaya}}
** [[File:MY Darjah Yang Mulia Pangkuan Negara (Defender of the Realm) - SMN.svg|50px]] Companion of the [[Order of the Defender of the Realm#Companion|Order of the Defender of the Realm]] (JMN) (1958)<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.istiadat.gov.my/v8/images/stories/1958.pdf|title=Senarai Penuh Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Persekutuan Tahun 1958.|publisher=[[Prime Minister's Department (Malaysia)]]|access-date=27 December 2020}}</ref>
* {{Flag|Malaysia}}
** [[File:Malaysian_Commemorative_Medal_ribbon.gif|50px]] Recipient of the [[Orders, decorations, and medals of Malaysia#Honorary orders and medals|Malaysian Commemorative Medal (Gold)]] (PPM) (1965)
** [[File:MY Darjah Yang Mulia Pangkuan Negara (Defender of the Realm)- PMN.svg|50px]] Commander of the [[Order of the Defender of the Realm#Commander|Order of the Defender of the Realm]] (PMN) – '''Tan Sri''' (1970)<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.istiadat.gov.my/v8/images/stories/1970.pdf|title=Senarai Penuh Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Persekutuan Tahun 1970.|publisher=[[Prime Minister's Department (Malaysia)]]|access-date=27 December 2020}}</ref>
* {{flag|Selangor}}
** [[File:MY-SEL Order of the Crown of Selangor - Knight Grand Commander - SPMS.svg|50px]] Knight Grand Commander of the [[Order of the Crown of Selangor]] (SPMS) – '''Dato' Seri''' (1970)<ref>{{cite web|title=SPMS 1970|url=https://awards.selangor.gov.my/sublinkyear.php?cat=40&subcat=S.P.M.S.|website=awards.selangor.gov.my|access-date=25 January 2022}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}
* [http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/41975 Malaysiakini.com - Samy Vellu and the Blue Book]

{{s-start}}
{{s-off}}
{{s-bef
| before = [[V. T. Sambanthan]]
}}
{{s-ttl
| title = [[Malaysian Indian Congress|Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) President]]
| years = 30 June 1973 – 12 October 1979
}}
{{s-aft
| after = [[Samy Vellu]]
}}
{{s-end}}

{{Third Rahman cabinet}}
{{Fourth Rahman cabinet}}
{{First Razak cabinet}}
{{Second Razak cabinet}}
{{First Hussein cabinet}}
{{Second Hussein cabinet}}
{{Portal bar|Malaysia|Biography|Politics}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Manickavasagam, V.}}
[[Category:1926 births]]
[[Category:1979 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Selangor]]
[[Category:Malaysian Hindus]]
[[Category:Malaysian politicians of Tamil descent]]
[[Category:Malaysian politicians of Indian descent]]
[[Category:Presidents of Malaysian Indian Congress]]
[[Category:Ministers of transport of Malaysia]]
[[Category:Companions of the Order of the Defender of the Realm]]
[[Category:Commanders of the Order of the Defender of the Realm]]
[[Category:Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Selangor]]
[[Category:Malaysian Indian Congress politicians]]
[[Category:Malaysian MPs 1959–1964]]
[[Category:Malaysian MPs 1964–1969]]
[[Category:Malaysian MPs 1971–1974]]
[[Category:Malaysian MPs 1974–1978]]
[[Category:Malaysian MPs 1978–1982]]

V. Manickavasagam - Revision history

Kjitcollege: added first details basic info.