Kerala Muslim Jamaat Accuses VD Satheesan of Betraying Sunni Groups Over Waqf Board Reorganisation

Malappuram: Kerala Muslim Jamaat leaders have accused Chief Minister VD Satheesan of deceiving Sunni groups, including the AP faction of Samastha, over the reorganisation of the Waqf Board.

At a press conference in Malappuram, the leaders said they had earlier been assured that the UDF government would not discriminate against Sunni groups. However, the exclusion of Sunni organisations from the reconstituted Waqf Board amounted to betrayal by the government, they said.

They alleged that even organisations managing a small number of Waqf properties had been given representation on the board, while the majority had been kept out. The Sunni organisation had been completely rejected, and its basic demands had been disregarded. This was unacceptable, they said.

The leaders said the protest could not be pacified by offering the community some other position. They compared the move to promising a child who failed to secure admission to Class 10 a place in Class 8, saying such an offer served no purpose.

A Sunni representative had been part of the previous Waqf Board, which was dissolved before completing its term, they said. Through the latest move, the Muslim League had lost an opportunity for dialogue within the community. Both factions of Samastha stood united on the issue, they added.

Kerala Muslim Jamaat will organise marches at district headquarters on the 22nd to protest against what it described as the government's betrayal.

The announcement was made at the press conference by Vadassery Hassan Musliyar, president of the Kerala Muslim Jamaat's Malappuram East district committee, and state working committee members P K Muhammad Basheer and K P Jamal Karulayi.