Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections next year, both Congress and the communists seem to be competing to woo the Islamic extremist outfit, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), in Kerala. According to E. P. Jayarajan of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Muslim League has significant seats on its own and the Congress failed to secure any constituency itself.
The Indian Union Muslim League is a crucial part of the United Democratic Front (UDF) and holds great importance for the left front. The Left Democratic Front (LDF) convener also attacked the Congress party for preventing P K Kunhalikutty, national general secretary of the IUML, from attending the M V Raghavan memorial meeting in Kannur.
E. P. Jayarajan said on 8 November, “Kunhalikutty maintained close ties with Raghavan. When the latter’s son Nikesh invited him for the meet, Kunhalikutty agreed. But the Congress was insecure and uncomfortable. It does not trust the League.” He maintained that his party was devoid of any weaknesses. “We moved from 91 to 99 seats. The people of Kerala wish to maintain this government. It is only natural that the Muslim League also wishes the same.”
Furthermore, he condemned the grand old party’s position on the Israel-Palestine conflict. “When Aryadan Shoukath held a pro-Palestine rally in Malappuram, the Congress opposed it. The Congress stance has generated a dissent within the IUML.” The former minister alleged that the LDF government is working to find a solution to the state’s financial problems. He conveyed the hope that Keralaleeyam would contribute to the state receiving more foreign investment.
The ties between Congress and the Muslim League
Rahul Gandhi during his visit to the United States this year made an astounding statement by calling the Indian Union Muslim League “completely secular.” He claimed, “Muslim League is a completely secular party, there is nothing non-secular about the Muslim League. I think the person has not studied the Muslim League,” in response to a question about his party’s alliance with IUML in Kerala.
The Congress has received “unconditional support” from the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) for the upcoming Telangana assembly elections. IUML national general secretary PK Kunhalikutty wrote to the Wayanad MP and asserted that the party would work closely with Congress to build a new government against the governing “fascists.”
The Congress and the IUML formed an alliance to run in the Kerala general elections of 2019. There were thousands of Muslim League flags flying during Rahul Gandhi’s roadshow in Wayanad. Their inclusion in the Nehru-Gandhi Parivar road show takes on additional significance because it was reported that the Congress party strictly instructed its ally not to deploy the flags for fear that it would damage their chances of winning elections in North India. Rahul Gandhi was allegedly at Wayanad with radical Muslims, per the CPI(M).
Muslim League’s love for Hamas and hate for India and Hindus
On 30 October IUML leader MK Muneer, Congress spokesperson Lavanya Ballal Jain, CPI(M) leader MA Baby and other speakers participated in a debate on India Today hosted by Rajdeep Sardesai and all of them refused to refer to Hamas as a terrorist organisation. Additionally, they avoided condemning the Hamas leader who was speaking at a rally in Kerala and debated the issue endlessly.
The IUML demonstrated their everlasting support for Palestine on 26 October by holding a large anti-Israel protest on the seashore in Kozhikode, Kerala and waved banners and chanted slogans in support of Hamas which carried out a surprise attack on Israel on 7 October killing hundreds of Israeli civilians and igniting one of the worst humanitarian crisis the world has ever seen.
According to reports, on 7 November, the IUML declined an invitation from the CPI(M) to take part in its 11 November Palestine solidarity rally. This decision, however, came about because of the IUML’s support of the Congress which is engaged in a full-scale political conflict with the CPI(M) in Kerala. The IUML reaffirmed its backing for the “cause of Palestine.”
On 27 July the Kerala police apprehended around 300 people including five members of the Indian Union Muslim League’s youth wing for yelling anti-Hindu and anti-Indian slogans during a protest march against Manipur violence in Kasargode.
The controversial chants were yelled at a protest on 25 July, a few days earlier. Slogans like “Ambalathil Ketti Thooki” (We will hang you in the temple) and “Pachakkittu Kathikkum” (We will burn you alive) were shown in the less than thirty-second video that quickly gained popularity on social media.
The complete slogan was “Without reciting the Ramayana, will be hanged in Temple, will be burnt unto death,” which meant that Hindus would be hanged in front of Sanctum Santorum without being allowed to recite Ramayana and will be burnt there unto death. Other slogans included “Youth League Zindabad” and “Muslim League Zindabad.”
Muslim League – Indian branch of Jinnah’s party
The All India Muslim League (AIML) founded by Pakistani ideologue and founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah is the parent organisation of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) which claimed to have emerged upon Indian independence in 1948. The Muslim League in Pakistan and the Indian Union Muslim League in India succeeded the All India Muslim League. IUML states that secularism and communal harmony are its two guiding principles on its website, yet it has frequently engaged in overtly pursuing goals that run counter to these statements.
Pakistan successfully prompted the British Empire to divide British India in 1947, despite the Muslim League’s vigorous advocacy for the creation of a distinct nation-state with a majority of Muslims. The goal to preserve the spirit of the All India Muslim League led to the founding of IUML in December 1947.
M. Muhammad Ismail was a strong advocate for Pakistan’s creation and actively participated in the country’s partition process. He served as the founder and first President of the Indian Union Muslim League following the league’s separation from Jinnah’s Muslim League. Importantly, he contended that the IUML was a secular group, however, it had in fact backed the Constituent Assembly’s decision to uphold Sharia law for Indian Muslims upon India’s independence.
He launched the first Muslim political party in the newly formed state of India and even negotiated with Congress to “recognize the League as the sole representative of Muslims.” This is comparable to the policies of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, who had consistently maintained that he and his party, the AIML, were the only delegates of Muslims in undivided India.
Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru teamed up with the IUML in Kerala after independence. Jinnah had proposed a coalition government with the Muslim League in 1937, however, it was refused by the Congress. Political Islamists like the IUML were further pushed to turn to greater communal politics under the pretext of defending the rights of Muslims in the nation by the opportunistic policies of Congress.
UML was allegedly founded on his guidance immediately before Jinnah departed the nation after the split of the country. He had infamously declared, “There must be a Muslim league in Hindustan.” The AIML had also noted that Pakistan’s might affected India’s ability to defend its minorities and had pledged that it “would do all to protect them.”
Role in the Marad Massacre of 2003
Activists from leftist and Islamist groups like the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the now-banned Popular Front of India and the Indian Union Muslim League killed eight innocent Hindu fishermen during the Marad massacre that rocked the nation in 2003. Marad Beach is a slum area located in the Kozhikode city of Kerala. Hindus and Muslims have a long history of communal strife with the majority of conflicts being caused by local Muslim organisations.
The conflicts that occurred in January 2003 between the two villages over the insignificant matter of drinking water from the public tap served as the impetus for the massacre that occurred on the fateful day in May of the same year. The remainder of the year was characterised by a prearranged plot by Islamic extremist groups like PFI, PDP (People Democratic Party), and IUML.
A special commission led by Justice Thomas P. Joseph was formed to investigate the riots after the nation was appalled by the premeditation and ruthlessness of the rioting by the Muslim community in the area.
The commission’s investigation revealed that the attack was orchestrated by members of Leftist and Islamist groups in a number of locations throughout the city, including the Juma Masjid in Marad. The firearms and explosives were kept on the Mosque grounds until the attack which was scheduled for a year in advance of the actual date and hour.
Radical Islam in the name of secularism
Indian opposition parties particularly the Left and Congress have a reputation for associating with radical groups in the name of secularism. Their politics is centred around the appeasement of such elements at the expense of the rule of law and national security. The political landscape of the Indian opposition parties endorses calls for the genocidal eradication of Sanatan Dharma and at the same time supports jihadi components in order to achieve short-term political objectives at the expense of national sovereignty.
