Sunni leader Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliar
A directive by veteran Sunni leader Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliar on Muslim women’s participation in public religious celebrations has triggered a political controversy in Keralam and opened a fresh rift between his faction and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)].Mr. Kanthapuram, general secretary of the Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama and Grand Mufti of India, asked mahals and madrasas under Samastha to ensure that religious programmes follow Islamic norms.The circular asked them to prevent women from sharing stage or public space with unrelated men during religious celebrations. It also advised against incorporating custom from other cultures into Islamic festivals.Samastha said the directive was meant for its followers and contained nothing new. It came amid changes in Milad-e-Sharif celebrations, which have expanded in some places from mosques, madrasas and mahals to larger public events organised by youth clubs.Mr. Kanthapuram later reiterated the position at a meeting in Kochi. He said women should remain at home and argued that their entry into the public sphere could lead to “chaos.” He cited purdah as a means of preventing such problems.The remarks drew criticism from CPI(M) leaders and women’s organisations. Former Minister and CPI(M) Central Committee member P.K. Sreemathy called for the withdrawal of the circular. Former Minister K.K. Shailaja said keeping women confined to their homes was a feudal practice.All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) leader C.S. Sujatha and Students Federation of India (SFI) State secretary P.S. Sanjeev also criticised the directive. Former Minister A.K. Balan said the CPI(M) would oppose Mr. Kanthapuram’s position even if the Prophet himself came and made such a statement.Women and Child Development Minister in Keralam and Congress leader Bindhu Krishna said such views could push women “centuries back” and stressed their constitutional right to participate in public life. Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala also said he did not support restricting women in public spaces.Support tooThe criticism has drawn a strong response from the Kanthapuram faction. Sunni Yuvajana Sangham (SYS) State general secretary Rahmathulla Saqafi Elamaram defended the directive in an article in Siraj, the mouthpiece of the Kanthapuram Sunni faction. He said the directive concerned the internal religious practices of Muslims and was not a restriction imposed on society as a whole. He said Islamic celebrations had a spiritual purpose and argued that young men and women singing and dancing together could shift the focus towards entertainment. He also rejected the charge that Mr. Kanthapuram’s position was anti-woman.The article also turned directly against the CPI(M). Mr. Saqafi questioned the intervention of Ms. Sreemathy and Ms. Shailaja and accused them of showing selective concern for Muslim women.He also accused the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and SFI activists of using the controversy to divert attention from an internal dispute within the Left Democratic Front over the post of the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. The article further criticised communist positions on gender and family, citing former Minister R. Bindu’s comments on a transgender couple and contrasting them with traditional Islamic views.The exchanges mark a departure from the long political and social association between Mr. Kanthapuram and the CPI(M). His associates have asked CPI(M) leaders not to interfere in religious matters.An old video of Mr. Kanthapuram has resurfaced in which he says religious scholars should deal with religious matters and politicians with politics.The CPI(M), meanwhile, has continued to frame the issue as one of women’s rights and public participation. The dispute has thus moved beyond the wording of the Samastha circular to a wider argument over religious autonomy, gender rights and the meaning of progressive politics.IUML takes no positionThe Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has not taken a public position on the directive. Local Administration Minister K.M. Shaji declined to comment on the issue.The controversy has so far remained largely an exchange between the Kanthapuram faction and CPI(M) leaders and organisations, with no major public challenge from the IUML or other Muslim organisations.Meanwhile, the Kerala Muslim Jamaat district committee has condemned Ms. Sreemathy and Youth Congress leader Jinto John for social media posts criticising the joint statement by Mr. Kanthapuram and Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama president E. Sulaiman Musliyar. Published - August 31, 2026 09:22 pm IST
