Amid a political row triggered by senior Kerala CPI(M) leader A.K. Balan’s remarks linking Jamaat-e-Islami to the Marad communal violence of the 2000s and warning that there would be “many Marads” if the Congress-led UDF came to power with the support of the Muslim organisation, Jamaat-e-Islami has sent him a legal notice seeking an apology and withdrawal of the statement. The organisation has also demanded compensation of ₹1 crore.
Jamaat-e-Islami Kerala Ameer P. Mujeebur Rahman said the organisation had worked to heal the wounds of Marad and warned the CPI(M) against “weaponising” communal violence for political purposes.
This comes after A.K. Balan alleged that if the UDF came to power, Jamaat-e-Islami would control the Home Department and that the state would witness not just one or two, but many “Marads.” He further claimed that both the Muslim League and the RSS were adopting approaches that could lead to such a situation.
Balan also stated that during both the first and second Marad incidents, as well as during the Thalassery riots, “they only stood and watched,” while his organisation, he claimed, confronted violence by putting its body on the line and even sacrificing lives. He added that he could never agree to turning Kerala into a communal killing field.
Jamaat-e-Islami has sent a legal notice demanding that the statement be withdrawn and an apology issued, warning that if it is not retracted within a week, both criminal and civil cases will be filed.
Mujeebur Rahman said it was the then Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer, Siddique Hassan, who visited Marad and held discussions with members of both communities to resolve the issue.
“Marad is a wound that Kerala wants to forget. At a time when even the BJP did not use it as a political weapon, the CPM should not try to weaponise Marad. A.K. Balan should not become a modern-day Goebbels,” Mujeebur Rahman said.
He claimed that even the then Chief Minister A.K. Antony had, on several occasions, stated that Jamaat-e-Islami had attempted to heal the wounds caused by the riot.
“Wherever riots have occurred, Jamaat-e-Islami has always stood at the forefront to calm the situation. It is an organisation that has been working in Kerala for 75 years. It has not carried out any activity that is harmful to society. It functions in the country according to the social values put forward by Islam. We want a Kerala where the Left also exists. That is what Kerala’s secular ethos requires,” he said.
He warned that the CPI(M)’s attempt to use Jamaat-e-Islami as a political tool is “dangerous” and should be abandoned.
“Stopping the Sangh Parivar is not the responsibility of minorities alone. The Left and the Right must stand together for this,” he said, alleging that “if they had done so, the BJP would not be ruling the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation today.”
Mujeebur Rahman asked the CPI(M) to clarify what communal activity Jamaat-e-Islami had ever carried out. “Has Jamaat-e-Islami ever tried to spread hatred against any other religion anywhere? Has the LDF government in Kerala registered even a single such case in the last ten years? Leaders should be restrained from making statements that spew communal poison,” he said.
He asserted that the CPI(M) should learn a lesson from the local body elections and should not attempt to use Marad as a political weapon. “If there are sensible people in the CPM, they should correct A.K. Balan,” he said.
He noted that Jamaat-e-Islami does not have a separate political agenda, clarifying that, “To defeat the BJP, we will support winning candidates even by keeping aside the Welfare Party’s interests.”
“At the national level, we have tried to prevent the fragmentation of Muslim votes. Maududi never took an anti-democratic position. We have had many conflicts with the Congress. If there is a need to protest again, we will protest,” he said.
Rahman stated that if the CPI(M) corrected its stance, Jamaat-e-Islami would continue to support it.
“Until 2011, we had held discussions with leaders of both fronts regarding support. There is nothing dangerous or abnormal about talking to Pinarayi Vijayan. We do not consider the CPM a minority-hating party,” he said.
He also clarified that Jamaat-e-Islami had not held any talks with the RSS. “We have only participated in discussions held with various Muslim organisations,” Mujeebur Rahman said.
Welfare Party state president Razak Paleri also demanded that A.K. Balan withdraw his statement and apologise to Kerala society.
Earlier, Kerala Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan said CPI(M) leader A.K. Balan’s statement was no different from the extremist line propagated by the Sangh Parivar.
He recalled how the BJP had once campaigned in Gujarat by claiming that if the Congress came to power, Ahmed Patel would become Chief Minister, stating that such propaganda was aimed at creating anti-Muslim sentiment among the majority community and dividing society.
“The same Sangh Parivar-style tactic is being used by A.K. Balan through this statement, and it is being done with the knowledge of the CPM leadership,” Satheesan said.
He asked whether, during the many times the CPI(M) ruled Kerala with the support of Jamaat-e-Islami, the Home Department was ever “run by Jamaat-e-Islami,” and accused the CPI(M) of deliberately attempting to create communal divisions in society.
Satheesan said the statements of Vellappally Natesan and A.K. Balan should be read together, and questioned whether CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam, who criticised Vellappally’s communal remarks, also supports A.K. Balan’s communal comment.
He further said the Left front was weakening and that, at such a time, the CPI(M) was adopting the same kind of communal campaign run by the BJP and Sangh Parivar, asserting that “secular Kerala would resist and defeat such propaganda by CPM leaders.”
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