Ubuntu – java plugin does not work in chromium-browser (all possible attempts exhausted)

I was using google chrome browser on Ubuntu 12.04 machine, recently I needed to switch to chromium-browser. I am using the version that is available on the Ubuntu software centre. The problem is that I can't make java applets to load any more.

Here is my situation —

1. I am using vanilla jdk (jdk 1.7.0_51) from the oracle.
2. Previously in chrome, I have created a symlink of libnpjp2.so to the /opt/google/chrome/plugins folder, java applets were working fine.
3. After uninstalling chrome and installing chromium-browser, I made a symlink of libnpjp2.so to /usr/lib/chromium-browser/plugins folder, but java applets do not fire up any more (even from this site: http://www.java.com/en/download/installed.jsp)
4. Even libnpjp2.so appears in about:plugins in chromium-browser and showing it's enabled.

What I have tried so far —

1. After uninstalling chrome, the /opt/google/chrome was still there, I removed it
2. Made the symlink as the point 3 above to /usr/lib/chromium-browser/plugins, but no luck.
3. So I installed icedtea-7-plugins from the Ubuntu repo and made a symlink of IcedTeaPlugin.so to /usr/lib/chromium-browser/plugins, but no luck, so I removed it.
4. Added the java applet test page to the exclusion list in the java control panel.
5. Cleared temporary internet files from the java control panel.
6. Did multiple cycles of "enable/disable" java plugins in chromium-browser.
7. Firing up the chromium-browser with -enable-plugins switch did not work.

When I go to the java applet test page, what I can only see is a grey rectangle, nothing else. Please note, everything was working fine on chrome browser and also in firefox. Please also note I do not want to install openjdk stuffs.

any idea ?