Minister N Samsudheen said Muslim groups reached a consensus over Waqf Board representation concerns. Those left out may be accommodated on minority welfare and Haj committees.
Thiruvananthapuram,Oct 20, 2026 18:56 IST
Keralam Minority Welfare Minister N Samsudheen on Tuesday said a consensus had been reached among Muslim groups that had raised concerns over their lack of representation on the reconstituted State Waqf Board, the Press Trust of India reported.
The minister said all groups could not be represented on the board because only two or three posts were available under the general category. He added that the government had not intended to exclude anyone.
The concerns were raised by the Kanthapuram A P Aboobacker Musliyar faction of the Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama after it did not get representation on the reconstituted board.
Samsudheen told reporters that appointments had to be made under different categories, leading to the issue. Those who could not be included on the board would be considered for other committees, including those related to minority welfare and Haj, he said.
"That is the stand of the Department, party and the UDF," Samsudheen said, according to PTI.
The minister claimed that a "consensus has been arrived at", but declined to disclose its details for now.
His statement came a day after Indian Union Muslim League state president Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal convened a meeting with leaders of various Muslim groups.
Samsudheen also said the Kerala High Court had approved the reconstituted board and had therefore not intervened despite two petitions challenging it. "As we reconstituted it according to the law, everyone could not be included in it," he said.
The Keralam government had last Friday dissolved the Waqf Board headed by K S Hamsa, which was constituted by the previous LDF government in March this year. It appointed a new nine-member board even though the previous board had more than four years of its tenure remaining.
The new board is headed by IUML leader M C Mayin Haji. Its other members are IUML leader and MLA Kurukkoli Moideen, Musthafa Faizi, Siras D Capsi, Thodiyoor Muhammed Kunju Maulavi, Sajna Firoz, Jaseem Sabaha, Dr Abdul Majeed Swalahi and C Madina Begham.
Samsudheen said the concerns over representation had been addressed through a consensus, while those not included on the Waqf Board would be considered for other committees.
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