Samastha's note of warning to Muslim political leadership

Kozhikode: The just-concluded Shariat conference held under the auspices of the Samastha Kerala Jamiathul Ulama ended on a critical note of warning to Muslim League that the party is not taking a serious position in the parliament on issues related to protection of Muslilm minority's rights.

Samastha President Sayyid Mohammed Jifri Muthukoya Thangal spoke in a noticeably critical tone against the attitude of Muslim League. Turning Muslim League leader and MP Kunhalikutty who was in the front row of the dais, he said that the MP's should act forcefully, as their predecessors did, when legislations were attempted against Muslims.

"Those like PK Kunhalikutty are to speak out for us in the parliament. They should be prepared to speak up like their predecessors. Earlier Banatwala and Sait Sahib had spoken up consistently and we currently are enjoying the fruit of their work. The leadership should take this as a mild dose limited to that. Perhaps a greater dose may be yet to come", so went the word of caution from Jifry Thangal.

President of Muslims League Malappuram district, Panakkad Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal, appeared to offer a weak defence for Kunhalikutty, but this did not make much impact on the audience.

Samastha assesses that when matters like Juvenile Justice Act (JJ Act) and triple talq came up for debate, the League failed to intervene with the seriousness they deserved. When in 2014 JJ Bill came up for discussion, the League was not seized of its importance or its consequence and failed to take a strong position.

When MK Muneer became minister of social justice, the JJ Act was strictly enforced, which caused much damage to the orphanages in the state. As a result, most of the orphanages in the state were forced to close down. The ones that survive are functioning only on borrowed time following an interim order from the Supreme Court, which itself was obtained by Samastha spending lakhs of rupees for court procedure.

And on the issue of triple talaq, Samastha's perception is that the Muslim League did not come forward with enough vigour to strike a defence against the bill. Therefore, Samastha was constrained to question the triple talaq ordinance also through a petition filed in the Supreme Court.

Samastha also has a grouse against the League, that when the issue of triple talaq came up, the latter did not show even the protest it did in the matter of women's entry to Sabarimala.