The Muslim community has welcomed the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government’s decision to withdraw from the move to leave Waqf Board appointments to the State Public Service Commission (PSC).
When two Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulamas headed by Syed Jifri Muthukoya Thangal and Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliar hailed the government and praised Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for keeping his word, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) claimed it as a success of the agitation that it spearheaded.
The two Samasthas roughly represent two-thirds of the Muslim community in Kerala. When both Sunni bodies toed an almost similar line by trusting Mr. Vijayan, the IUML appeared on a different track trying to politicise the matter and, thus, to alienate the Muslim community at large from the LDF government.
Deft move
But sensing the IUML plans, the government cleverly handled the matter by taking all major Muslim organisations into confidence. Particularly ingenious was the Chief Minister when he opened a direct communication link with Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama (EK group) president Syed Jifri Muthukoya Thangal and assured him that nothing would be done against the opinion of Muslim bodies.
The Thangal trusted Mr. Vijayan and was apparently happy about being considered. His reaction soon after the government decision on Wednesday revealed his trust in the government. “The government has kept its promise,” he said.
If viewed closely, the government move can be interpreted as the LDF’s political victory over the IUML.
Stalling IUML
The government, by snuggling up to the Samastha, the largest Muslim body in the State, calculatedly destroyed the convention that the IUML would lead in all Muslim matters. The LDF could bring about a wedge between the Samastha and the IUML by clever handling of the Waqaf matter.
When the IUML and other Muslim bodies such as the Jamat-e-Islami and different Mujahid groups wanted to stir up the issue by taking it to mosques, Syed Jifri Muthukoya Thangal opposed it. He warned that mosques should not be converted into arenas of political battles. The rival Samastha headed by Kanthapuram, with whom the LDF has better relations, backed the Thangal.
A mega “Waqaf protection conference” organised by the IUML on the Kozhikode beach on December 9 last year tacitly warned the Samastha against Jifri Thangal’s high-handedness. The League meet, however, had evoked sharp criticism for the licentious tongue of one of its leaders who levelled allegations of illegitimacy in the Chief Minister’s daughter’s marriage to Public Works Minister P.A. Mohamed Riyas.
INL jibe
The Indian National League (INL) on Wednesday took a swipe at the IUML for its statement that the government’s withdrawal in Waqf appointments was because of the party’s agitation. “They (IUML) are covering their shame by making such statements,” INL leaders said in Kozhikode.
Even when shattering the IUML attempts to distance the Muslim community from the LDF government, the Chief Minister has won the confidence of sections of community by his clever handling of the Waqaf matter.
