PETALING JAYA: Pakatan Harapan’s Padang Serai candidate M Karupaiya has passed away.
His passing was confirmed by PKR information chief Fahmi Fadzil.
“I can confirm he passed away. I just found out 15 minutes ago and am still waiting for more details,” he told FMT.
Penang PKR deputy chief Bakthiar Wan Chik told FMT that Karupaiya’s family told him the 69-year-old’s cause of death was ischaemic heart disease.
In a statement, PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said Karupaiya’s death was a “great loss to the party”.
Meanwhile, Kulim district police chief Redzuan Salleh said Karupaiya breathed his last at 2.27pm at the Kulim hospital.
“We have yet to get any details pertaining (to) his cause of death and we will update you later. Our condolences to his family,” he told FMT.
Karupaiya, who was seeking re-election to a second term, was in a six-cornered fight against Barisan Nasional’s C Sivarraajh, Perikatan Nasional’s Azman Nasrudin, Pejuang’s Hamzah Abdul Rahman, Warisan’s Bakri Hashim, and independent candidate Sreanandha Rao.
In a statement, Sivarraajh described Karupaiya’s death as a “huge, unexpected loss for the community of Padang Serai”.
“Karupaiya was a veteran who dedicated part of his life to public service and politics,” he said. “We are shocked to hear this news. May his soul rest in peace.”
When contacted, Election Commission (EC) chairman Abdul Ghani Salleh said the EC would issue a statement on Karupaiya’s death shortly.
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