R. G. Balan (born 22 November 1921, date of death unknown) was of the

Malayan Peoples' Anti-Japanese Army The Malayan Peoples' Anti-Japanese Army (MPAJA) was a communist guerrilla army that resisted the Japanese occupation of Malaya from 1941 to 1945. Composed mainly of ethnic Chinese guerrilla fighters, the MPAJA was the largest anti-Japanese res ...

. He worked underground in

Tapah Tapah is a town and the capital of Batang Padang District, Perak, Malaysia. Name The name "Tapah" is said to be originated from the name of a freshwater fish, ''"Ikan Tapah"''. The scientific name of the fish is '' Wallago leeri''. The loc ...

Kampar Kampar may refer to: Indonesia *Kampar Regency, Riau Province, eastern Sumatra *Kampar River, a river in the same province Malaysia *Kampar District, Perak *Kampar, Perak, a town in Kampar District *Kampar River, Malaysia Kampar may refer to: Ind ...

area as a

Communist Party of Malaya The Malayan Communist Party (MCP), officially the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM), was a Marxist–Leninist and anti-imperialist communist party which was active in British Malaya and later, the modern states of Malaysia and Singapore from 1 ...

's Tamil publicist during the

Japanese occupation of Malaya The then British colony of Malaya was gradually occupied by the Japanese between 8 December 1941 and the Allied surrender at Singapore on 16 February 1942. The Japanese remained in occupation until their surrender to the Allies in 1945. The ...

. He was a close friend with

Abdullah CD Cik Dat bin Anjang Abdullah, commonly known as Abdullah CD (born 2 October 1923), is a former Malaysian politician who served as chairman and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM). Biography Abdullah was born on 2 October 1 ...

and Suriani Abdullah, whom both of them were also active members of

Personal life

Balan was born Raja Gopal in Nova Scotia Estate,

Teluk Intan Teluk Intan is a town in Hilir Perak District, Perak, Malaysia. It is the district capital and largest town in Hilir Perak district and fourth largest town in the state of Perak with an estimated population of around 172,505, more than half of ...

on 22 November 1921, to a Ceylonese father and an Indian mother. Balan had a son, Gunallan. His mother was V. Sinnathayamma. He had a brother, Thirunoyam and a sister, Suppammal. His father died in 1958. R. G. Balan died prior to February 2002.

Involvement in politics

In 1947, R.G Balan, along with

Rashid Maidin Rashid Maidin (10 October 1917 – 1 September 2006), sometimes given as Rashid Mahideen, was a senior leader of the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM). Personal life He was born in Kampung Gunung Mesah, Gopeng, Perak; coincidentally on the same ...

and Wu Tien Wang, attended the Communist Parties Conference of Commonwealth Nations in London, as representatives of the Communist Party in

Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...

. After his return, he organised the Perak Rubber Labourers Union. R.G. Balan remained as a labour organiser until he was detained without trial by the colonial authority on 30 May 1948 and not released until 1961. In 1955, while he was under detention, R.G. Balan was appointed a vice chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Malaya. They first met R.G. Balan in Ipoh immediately after the war had ended, when most of the underground party members emerged as victors of the Pacific War in Malaya.

References

1921 births Year of death missing Malaysian communists Malaysian people of Indian descent Malaysian politicians Malaysian Hindus People from Teluk Intan {{Malaysia-politician-stub