Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) State president Syed Sadiqali Shihab Thangal will pay a courtesy call on heads of various denominations of the Church, including the Syro-Malabar, leadership of various Hindu communities such as the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam and the Nair Service Society (NSS) during his Statewide campaign to foster religious harmony beginning next week.
The campaign will be flagged off from Kasaragod on June 2 aimed at seeking inter-faith support to mitigate the disturbing communal trend in Kerala. “The situation appears to be getting out of hand. Something has to be done before it becomes difficult to control,” the Thangal told The Hindu on Thursday.
The aim
He said that friendship gatherings would be held with the objective of preserving the secular traditions and brotherhood of the State and strengthening mutual trust and unity among different communities. Besides, he would also hold meetings with cultural and social leaders and prominent literary figures in all the districts. “These gathering will be held in the forenoon while a convention of party workers will be held in the evening,“ he said.
The Thangal said that a schedule had been chalked out in each district with a culmination rally in Kozhikode on June 23. “ The organisers are in touch with community and religious leaders for this purpose,“ he said.
Dangerous trend
On the dangerous growth of Islamist organisations in the State, the Thangal remarked that the party leadership was aware of the motives of these groups trying to create a communal wedge between communities in society. “Members of the Muslim community should not fall prey to these vicious incitements. Islamist outfits have somewhat politically gained a toehold in the Southern parts,“ he said.
The Thangal admitted that the IUML was weak in south Kerala when compared to its strongholds in the north Kerala. “We have devised strategies to counter the threats posed by communal elements in the community. For that, the party’s youth wing, the Muslim Youth League, will be actively engaged to take on these outfits,” he said.
He said that the equations between the IUML and the section of the party-backed Samastha Kerala Jamiyathul Ulema leaders were cordial and that lingering issues on Waqf Board had been sorted out.
