IUML Keralam chief Sadikali Thangal downplays row over Waqf board reconstitution

Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) State president Syed Sadikali Shihab Thangal on Sunday downplayed the controversy over the reconstitution of the State Waqf Board.

He told the media here that those who had grievances were free to approach the court. Mr. Thangal maintained that all Muslim organisations had been given representation in the board and those left out could be considered for membership in other bodies.

“The bodies such as the Hajj Committee and the Madrasa Welfare Fund Board are yet to be reconstituted by the government. Those who have not been included in the Waqf board will be considered for such bodies,” Mr. Thangal said.

Amid criticism

His comments come against the backdrop of the criticism from the Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama faction led by Sunni scholar Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliar that they had not been given fair representation in the board.

Responding to allegations that Sunni organisations managing a large number of Waqf properties, such as the Kanthapuram faction, had been denied proper representation, Mr. Thangal said the board would address all these concerns without any discrimination. He said the chairman of the Hajj Committee is still a representative of the Kanthapuram faction and that the United Democratic Front (UDF) government did not change that arrangement.

He also maintained that the reconstituted Waqf board included representatives associated with the Samastha. “There are two representatives from the Samastha. One is the chairman himself, who is among its prominent members. Musthafal Faisy is also from the Samastha,” Mr. Thangal said.