KOZHIKODE: Striking a different note in the IUML, which has been asserting its religious identity recently, former MLA and the party leader KNA Khader said that religion should not be mixed with politics.
In an article in the Suprabhatham daily, Khader said that it would be ideal for the political parties to remain neutral on religious affairs. "Political parties should not sneak into religions and make them their breeding grounds," he said.
It may be recalled that IUML's increased dependence on Islam as a political strategy has invited criticism from different corners. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has asked the IUML to clarify whether it is a political party or religious outfit. "Party and religion are different entities. We cannot say those who have politics should not have religious faith or vice versa. But both should not be mixed and spell doom in the society," Khader said.
The IUML leader said that while politics deals with the basic necessities like food and habitat, religion by and large handles peace and tranquility in the world hereafter. "If there are disputes between religions or within the religion, they can approach government, police or judiciary. So, it would be wise for the believers not to present themselves as the supporters or enemies of any political party," Khader said.
It is significant that Khader's article appeared a few days after Samastha Kerala Jam-Iyyathul Ulema leader M T Abdulla Musaliar stated that 'IUML is Samastha and Samstha is IUML'. It is interpreted that Musaliar took the position at the instance of the IUML leadership.
In contrast, Samastha president Syed Muhammd Jiffiri Muthukoya Thangal reiterated that the religious organization has no political affiliation though majority of the its cadres is IUML workers. He had told reporters in Kozhikode that Samastha's institutions are not intended to be the production centre of politicians.
Aligning directly with any political party was not in the tradition of the Samastha leadership. Abdulla Musaliar's assertion is seen by many as an aberration.
The allegation against the IUML leadership is that it is pressurizing the religious leaders to toe its political line, which was rejected by Jiffiri Thangal. Khader's article has given new energy to Thangal's supporters to resist the IUML pressure tactics.