PETALING JAYA, March 8 — Tatiana Kumar, who was stripped of her Miss Malaysia World title on Monday, has denied she breached the pageant organiser’s code of conduct.
She said the decision of the pageant’s national director Datuk Anna Lim to terminate her agreement with her company, Meridian Surf Sdn Bhd, after she won the title last August, was unjustifiable.
“The termination of the agreement and the removal of my title are wrongful and wholly unjustified as I have certainly not breached the agreement or any so-called code of conduct,” Tatiana, 18, said in a statement.
“More importantly, the allegations made against me are false and unacceptable. I am upset and disappointed with the allegations as I have conducted myself with utmost professionalism as Miss Malaysia World 2016.”
Tatiana said she was seeking legal redress and she had been advised not to make any more public statements.
Lim on Monday said Tatiana, had among others, offended one of her sponsors at the pageant’s finale in the United States in December by refusing to wear its garments. She also said Tatiana had disregarded her advice.
Lim said yesterday Tatiana had also embarrassed her on her Facebook page by giving the impression her company failed to pay for her air tickets for the grand finale.
She said Tatiana had posted a thank you note on Facebook to Tourism Malaysia and her father for sponsoring her business class ticket, which generated criticisms about Lim when her company was going to pay for her economy class fare.
“I am upset and ashamed by the posts on her Facebook page,” said Lim, who also said she had engaged a lawyer on the matter.
After Tatiana was stripped of the title, Lim had announced Shweta Sekhon, the first runner-up, as the new Miss Malaysia World 2016.
* Editor’s note: The print version carried a misspelling of Datuk Anna Lim’s name which has been corrected here.
