An audio clip of senior Malayalam journalist MP Basheer, the former editorial head of the now-defunct news outlet – Indiavision, has gone viral on the internet, in which the Kerala-based journalist made sensational disclosure regarding how radical Islamic organisations across the world are financing projects that promote Islamism in India.
According to Kerala-based news outlet Marunadan Malayali, an audio of a Clubhouse conversation featuring journalist MP Basheer has gone viral, in which he was heard revealing details pertaining to the international funding to advance radical Islam in the country.
In the viral Clubhouse audio, a person, who identifies himself as MP Basheer, can be heard saying that during his time as the Editor of the Indiavision news network, one day he received a telephone call from T Arif Ali, secretary-general of the radical Islamic organisation Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. According to Basheer, Arif Ali asked the journalist to meet him.
A few days later, MP Basheer went to meet Arif Ali at the Jamaat-e-Islami office in Trivandrum. At the meeting, Ali expressed concerns about three women reporters named Nadeera Ajmal, Fousiya and V Shabana disrespecting Islam by not wearing the Hijab when they appear on the news network. Giving a subtle warning, Ali said to Basheer that the news network, especially the ‘un-Islamic’ conduct of the women reporters, gave a wrong message to Muslims in the country.
In the audio, Basheer revealed that Ali mentioned how Basheer as Executive Editor could intervene to get the women to change their attire. In a sensational disclosure, Basheer said that he had accessed a letter at one point of time, written by Jamaat-e-Islami requesting the King Abdul Aziz University in Saudi Arabia to increase the financial grant to the radical Islamic organisation so that they could create awareness and promote Islamic dress code in Kerala and India.
Further, Basheer revealed that Jamaat-e-Islamic had started a project in India to promote the Islamic dress code for women and had access to funds from King Abdul Aziz University, an Islamic university in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. He also said that many top Muslim journalists in the country were employed to assist them in this nefarious design, which King Abdul Aziz University allegedly paid.
The letter which Basheer mentioned in his Clubhouse discussion was a letter written by Jamaat-e-Islami seeking more grants for implementing this Islamisation project, which according to the journalist, has been continuing for the last three decades.
Is Saudi Arabia sponsoring Wahabism in Kerala?
The recent disclosure by journalist MP Basheer comes at the backdrop of unsettling evidence of Saudi Arabia indirectly funding ultra-radical Islamic thought of Wahabism, the ideological thought that drives terror organisation Islamic State, in several madrasas in Kerala.
A recent investigation by India Today had revealed that several madrasas in Kerala are preaching Wahabism, a Saudi-sponsored creed of extremist Islam linked to global terror. Reportedly, these madrasas are receiving funds through hawala networks from Islamic countries in the Gulf.
It is alleged that these madrasas are indoctrinating young Muslims a radical thought that is aligned with ISIS, the Islamic terror outfit that intends to establish a global caliphate through a worldwide war. However, teaching Wahabism to young Muslims is not limited to one centre in Kerala, according to India Today, several other madrasas are on the same path to Islamic terror influencers like controversial Islamic televangelist Zakir Naik.
Abdul Malik, who runs a madrasa in Karanthur, had earlier admitted that they show videos and speeches of Zakir Naik videos were shown regularly to young children at his centre.
Not just rich Gulf states, even Turkey has been forefront at funding radical Islamic thought in India, especially in Kashmir and Kerala.
Turkey, Pakistan funding anti-India activities, in touch with radical Islamic organisations
Turkey has been actively funding and supporting extremist Islamic organisations in Kerala and Kashmir. As a result, Turkey, led by Islamist leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has now emerged as the epicentre of anti-India activities.
The expansionist Turkish government, seeking to establish its dominance in the Islamic world through its conservatism and ‘Ottoman traditions’, is now exerting its influence on South Asian Muslims. In this endeavour, Turkey has joined hands with Pakistan to expand its influence in the region. The Turkish organisations have been in constant touch with Islamist organisations in the region.
The IHH, also known as İnsan Hak ve Hürriyetleri ve İnsani Yardım Vakfı, has an alliance with radical Islamic organisation Popular Front of India (PFI). The two radical Islamic organisations have met in the run-up to the Lok Sabha Elections in 2019. Erdogan is also funding religious seminars in India to radicalise Muslims and taking them on a full-expense covered trip to Turkey for further indoctrination.
Pakistani and Turkish officials had also funded hate preacher Zakir Naik, accused of inciting and radicalising Indian Muslims with Qatar’s help. Besides criticising India over the humanitarian Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the subsequent riots, the Turkish government had reportedly pumped in funds to prolong the protests.
This ongoing trend of radicalisation emanating from Kerala leaves the country vulnerable to a national security threat, especially from radical Islamic organisations that operate outside India but enjoys considerable influence within the country.
