Anwar Ibrahim Elected New Prime Minister Of Malaysia Anwar Ibrahim Political Journey And Its Effect On India Malaysia Relationship

Malaysia PM Anwar Ibrahim: Anwar Ibrahim, who was the biggest leader of the reform movement in Malaysia, has taken over the chair of the Prime Minister. Anwar came close to the PM’s chair several times, but never got a chance to sit on it. That is why it can be said that he waited for many years to reach here. Despite going to jail several times and being booked in many serious cases, he emerged as a strong opposition leader and now he has finally got his reward. The appointment of Anwar Ibrahim as the PM of Malaysia is being considered very special from India’s point of view. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated him for being elected PM. Let us understand what changes can come in the relations between India and Malaysia under Anwar’s rule.

Who is Anwar Ibrahim?
The image of Anwar Ibrahim has been as a revolutionary leader, who opposed the policies of the government on every front. Due to this image, he had to go to jail during the tenure of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad. He first got recognition as a fiery student leader. He later joined the political party United Malay National Organization (UMNO). In the year 1993, the deputy PM was made in the Mahathir government itself. But after a few years, a dispute started between these two leaders on many issues.

He was removed from the post in 1998, since then Ibrahim launched a campaign against Mahathir. He was later arrested on charges of sodomy and corruption and imprisoned for years. After this, he was released after the order of the Supreme Court in the year 2004. After this, he worked to strengthen his party and today he has taken power in his name.

How has been the relationship with Malaysia?
Although the relations between India and Malaysia have not been very bad, but there has been discussion about diplomatic and business relations. However, due to some statements of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, there was bitterness in relations with Malaysia. Mahathir had raised questions and criticized India’s decision regarding CAA-NRC. Apart from this, when Article 370 was removed, objections were also raised on his behalf. After this, India had warned him not to interfere in the internal matter.

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Meanwhile, India almost completely banned the import of palm oil from Malaysia. There was a long dispute between the two countries regarding this. A statement came from Mahathir Mohammad that no matter how much financial loss he had to face, he would continue to speak about wrong things. Apart from this, there was tension between India and Malaysia regarding the controversial scholar Zakir Naik. The Government of India had asked Mahathir to hand over Zakir Naik, but he flatly refused to do so, which only added to the bitterness.

However, later Mahathir Mohammad had to resign from the post of PM and Mohiuddin Yasin took oath as PM. After this, Yasin started an initiative to improve relations with India. There were several talks between the diplomats of both the countries regarding this.

On what basis can relationships improve?
Relations between Malaysia and India can improve if Anwar Ibrahim becomes the PM. The biggest reason for this is that Anwar is a reformist leader, who lays more emphasis on development rather than taking decisions on Islamic basis. Due to Mahathir Mohammad, efforts can be made to improve Malaysia’s relations with countries including India. When Mahathir’s statements caused a rift in relations with India, then Anwar Ibrahim, who was sitting in the opposition, talked about improving relations through talks.

Apart from this, there can also be talk about the controversial scholar Zakir Naik. India can try to bring Zakir back by talking to Anwar Ibrahim. Recently, there was a controversy regarding the invitation to the FIFA World Cup, after which the Qatar government said that Naik was not invited on their behalf.

In the congratulatory message given by the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi to Anwar Ibrahim, a clear glimpse of how the relations between the two countries can be further sweetened. PM Modi said in his congratulatory tweet that “Congratulations to Anwar Ibrahim on being elected as the Prime Minister… I look forward to working together to further strengthen the strategic partnership between India and Malaysia.”

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