Yuneswaran Ramaraj

Yang Berhormat Tuan
Yuneswaran Ramaraj
MP
யுனேஸ்வரன் ராமராஜ்
Member of the Malaysian Parliament
for Segamat
Incumbent
Assumed office
19 November 2022
Preceded byEdmund Santhara Kumar Ramanaidu
(PH–PKR)
Majority5,669 (2022)
Personal details
Born
Yuneswaran a/l Ramaraj

(1987-11-04) 4 November 1987 (age 37)
Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
Political partyPeople's Justice Party (PKR)
Other political
affiliations		Pakatan Harapan (PH)
OccupationPolitician

Yang Berhormat Tuan Yuneswaran Ramaraj (born 4 November 1987) commonly referred to as R. Yuneswaran is a Malaysian politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Segamat since November 2022. He is a member of the People's Justice Party (PKR), a component party of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition.[1]

Early years

He grew up in the Klang Valley and attended Sin Min Chinese School in Sungai Besar, Selangor before completing secondary school at SMK Desa Cemerlang (Ulu Tiram), Johor. He eventually obtained an MBA through the Anglia Ruskin University.[2]

He joined PKR in 2008 and was the first person to be prosecuted under the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 for organising the Blackout 505 rally in Johor in 2013.[3][4] In 2018 he served as campaign manager for Edmund Santhara who managed to wrest the seat from Barisan Nasional for the first time.[2]

After Santhara defected, Yuneswaran was selected by PKR and he won in the 2022 General election by a comfortable majority of 5,669 votes over MIC’s M Ramasamy, with Perikatan Nasional’s P Poobalan trailing in third.[2]

On 3 April 2023, the election court in Muar dismissed Ramasamy’s election petition challenging Yuneswaran’s victory.[5] However on 18 August 2023, the Federal Court today set aside the verdict and allowed Ramasamy's appeal to send back his Segamat election petition to the Election Court for a full hearing.[6] Eventually, on 8 November 2023, Election Court judge Rohani Ismail allowed Ramasamy’s application to discontinue the petition.[7]

Following his election Yuneswaran called for flood mitigation and transport infrastructure upgrades in northern Johor to be made a priority. He also backed electoral reforms calling for proportional representation in the Dewan Rakyat and the elections for municipal councils and the Dewan Negara.[7]

Election result

Parliament of Malaysia
Year Constituency Candidate Votes Pct Opponent(s) Votes Pct Ballots cast Majority Turnout
2022 P140 Segamat Yuneswaran Ramaraj (PKR) 23,437 46.27% Ramasamy Muthusamy (MIC) 17,768 35.08% 50,652 5,669 73.03%
Poobalan Ponusamy (BERSATU) 8,385 16.55%
Syed Hairoul Faizey Syed Ali (PUTRA) 1,062 2.10%

References

  1. ^ "Keputusan | Pilihan Raya Umum Malaysia Ke-15". PRU @ Sinar Harian.
  2. ^ a b c Vengadesan, Martin (25 January 2024). "What did ex-Segamat MPs do, first-term MP Yuneswaran asks". Malaysiakini.
  3. ^ GASPER, DESIREE TRESA. "Yuneswaran to stand trial for holding rally". The Star.
  4. ^ Sipalan, Joseph (26 September 2013). "PKR man first to be convicted under assembly law". www.malaymail.com.
  5. ^ Reporters, F. M. T. (3 April 2023). "Court affirms Segamat MP Yuneswaran's victory in GE15". Court affirms Segamat MP Yuneswaran’s victory in GE15.
  6. ^ "Federal Court allows BN candidate's appeal for full hearing of Segamat election petition | New Straits Times". NST Online. 18 August 2023.
  7. ^ a b Vengadesan, Martin (26 January 2024). "PKR, Harapan need bold rebranding moving forward - Yuneswaran". Malaysiakini.