Malaysia Silambam Association given another three months to sort out issues related to 'fake' approval letter to host 2024 international meet

The Sports Commissioner's Office instructs Malaysia Silambam Association to clarify and take remedial steps over allegations that a fake approval letter from the international body was used to organise the 2024 International Silambam Championship.

KUALA LUMPUR: An International Silambam Championship was held in Sepang in 2024. It was organised by the Malaysia Silambam Association (MSA), with the International Silamban Federation (ISF) allegedly approving the meet.

The approval letter from the international body has since been contested, raising concerns about integrity, governance and a possible suspension of the national body if it does not clear up the mess within the next three months.

The ISF, in a letter dated June 1, 2024, wrote to Malaysia’s youth and sports minister stating that it had not given MSA permission to organise the international competition, held from May 25 to 27 that year. The letter was signed by its president, L.K. Radjacoumar. Twentytwo13 reached out to Radjacoumar, who is based in India, and he confirmed the contents of the letter.

Malaysia’s Sports Commissioner’s Office said it had been alerted about the episode and was monitoring the “remedial” steps being taken by MSA.

“The association (MSA) came back to us. They said they wanted to hold the AGM, but there are still certain things that they haven’t clarified,” Sports Commissioner Arrifin Ghani told Twentytwo13.

Arrifin did not get into the details of the matters that had yet to be clarified.

However, the Sports Commissioner’s Office (SCO), in a letter dated Nov 21, 2025, told MSA it had received complaints about the organising of the international competition in 2024 and that investigations by the SCO revealed that ISF was “not registered” and “several MSA office bearers were involved in providing false or fake information to the SCO to organise the tournament.”

The SCO instructed MSA to carry out “remedial steps” over the wrongdoings within six months from the date of the letter. The six months ended in May.

“We told them that they have to hold the annual general meeting (AGM) first, but the number one thing they should do is get the consent of all the members,” said Arrifin.

“Also, we cannot take action against an individual, only against sports bodies or institutions. So, if there has been any misconduct within the association by an individual, the association itself should take action.”

Arrifin, however, said his office required proof that action had been taken against the individuals involved.

“So, for now, we haven’t accepted their dates to hold an AGM until there’s a letter confirming that action was taken against those involved. So we’re giving them another three months.

“If nothing happens, we can’t do anything else but to suspend the association. But I hope they can resolve the issue, because this is basically an internal matter,” he added.