He also said that he was offended that Mr Lee had said in the book that Tun Razak, Malaysia's second Prime Minister, had tried to bribe a Singapore leader.

In extracts of the book published in Singapore last weekend, Mr Lee said that Tun Razak had once offered Mr Goh Keng Swee 5,000 acres of prime rubber land, planted with high-yielding seed, but Mr Goh turned down the inducement.

Commenting on what Mr Lee said, Datuk Seri Najib said: "My family and I are deeply hurt over his action and it shows that he does not care about the feelings of others, especially those in Malaysia.

"I regret very much the publication of the book by Lee Kuan Yew because he has written about events pertaining to people who have passed away."

He was speaking to reporters, who asked for his comments on the excerpts published in The Sunday Times, in Singapore, last weekend. Datuk Seri Najib said that Mr Lee should not have made accusations about someone who was no longer around to defend himself.

Referring to his late father, he added: "I cannot comment on what had happened then as I was only 11.

"But based on his track record and his character and background, in the context of Malaysian politics, he was never known to be guilty of such abuses or worse still, playing a role to create chaos or cause racial riots in Singapore in 1964."

Datuk Najib said that Mr Lee should not have made such accusations as it would only aggravate already tense bilateral relations between Singapore and Malaysia.

"Certainly it doesn't help in terms of bilateral relations and it is very bad timing as it comes at a time when our relations are going through choppy waters."

"It shows that Lee is insensitive about the feelings of others," he said. -- Bernama