Karam Singh Veriah

Karam Singh Veriah (October 26, 1936 - January 22, 1994), was a socialist politician from Malaysia. He won the Damansara seat at 23 in the 1959 elections, representing Parti Rakyat Malaysia which was then part of the Socialist Front coalition.

He simultaneously won the Serdang seat in the Selangor state assembly. Upon his release, he continued working as a lawyer and activist but eventually died of a heart attack in 1994.

Career Karam was the eldest in a family of five boys and four girls. He was born on October 26, 1936 in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan.

He also worked as legal adviser for the United Malayan Estate Workers Union, Malayan Workers Welfare Society and the Socialist Youth League. Karam was also vice-president of PRM during the time of Ahmad Boestamam's leadership, being elected to the role in November 1957.

In the 1959 elections, he contested the Damansara parliamentary seat against MCA's Lee Eng Teh. He won decisively by garnering 9,026 votes compared to Lee's tally of 5,653.

His daughter Harinder died in Hong Kong on January 2, 2000. Her widowed husband, leftist journalist Martin Jacques filed a lawsuit over her death claiming racial prejudice and medical negligence at the hospital which treated her.

His son Keshminder served as a municipal councillor in Subang Jaya appointed by Parti Keadilan Rakyat, following its breakthrough in the 2008 general elections in Malaysia. He died on November 28, 2023.

Another daughter Jasvinder is the author of popular cookbook Champur: Flavours from a Malaysian Home.

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