Save Vivekananda Ashram to hold vigil to protest trustees’ court action

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 29): Save Vivekananda Ashram Brickfields committee will hold a candlelight vigil tomorrow to protest the ashram board of trustees' application for a judicial review to void the decision to declare the ashram a heritage site.

Committee chairman G Gunasegaran said the vigil would take place at the ashram in Jalan Tun Sambanthan, Kuala Lumpur at 6pm.

"We are upset by the board of trustees’ decision to take legal action against the Tourism and Culture Ministry.

"We hope people will come out in support of our call for the board of trustees to rescind the application," he said.

The Malaysian Insider reported on Nov 19 that the Vivekananda Ashram board of trustees had filed for a judicial review to quash the National Heritage Department's declaration of the century-old ashram a historical site.

The trustees filed the application at the Kuala Lumpur High Court registry last month.

They named the National Heritage Department, its commissioner Dr Zainah Ibrahim, the Ministry of Tourism and Culture and its minister as respondents.

Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz had last month announced that the ashram would be gazetted as a national heritage site after appeals from the owner were rejected.

Nazri said the minister's decision was final and no further appeals would be entertained or could be made in court.

The government had twice proposed to gazette the 110-year-old building as a heritage site but were rejected by the ashram’s board of directors.

The board had instead submitted a proposal to sell and build a 23-storey apartment tower on the land. Due to objections from various parties and the public, City Hall put a temporary halt to the project.

Nazri said the building had significant cultural and historical value, and that it was proof that the Sri Lankan Jaffnas came to Malaysia and their first settlement was in Brickfields.

The building was opened by the first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman in 1958. Historically, it is known as a centre for education and culture, as well as a gathering point for the community.

In the early 1990s, cultural and spiritual activities such as dance, vocal and yoga classes were held at the ashram. -- The Malaysian Insider

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