KOZHIKODE: Police action inside the Madakkara Juma Masjid near Vadakara during Prophet’s Day celebrations has erupted into a major political controversy, with political parties criticising police conduct within the place of worship. The confrontation initially broke out on Monday night between rival factions over a long-standing feud regarding the appointment of the mosque’s Khateeb (the person who delivers a sermon) as well as financial discrepancies linked to a former mosque committee, following which some members brought police to the scene.
The action has drawn sharp criticism from the CPM, with party leaders holding the government responsible and pointing out that such actions inside places of worship were unheard of during the LDF rule.
MLA Mohamed Riyas expressed his disapproval on social media, writing that “sights not seen in ten years are being witnessed now” and adding that “if there is a dispute inside a mosque, it should be resolved legally rather than having the police enter inside with lathis”.
CPM leader and former minister K T Jaleel echoed these sentiments in a sarcastic Facebook post, alleging that “the place where believers perform Sujood (prostration) is where the police barged in wearing shoes” and mockingly terming the beatings as the “League’s gift on Prophet’s Day”.
Meanwhile, the IUML, Welfare Party, and SDPI have also demanded strict action against the police for trespassing into the sacred space without removing their footwear. IUML state secretary Parakkal Abdulla MLA said, “Armed police trespassed into the mosque without any provocation and lathi-charged innocent believers.
They walked over prayer mats wearing boots, used filthy language, and assaulted people.” MLA and IUML Kozhikode district president M A Razak said, “When believers were inside the mosque to discuss the Prophet’s Day programmes, Chombala police barged inside wearing boots without any major provocation”.
Dismissing the CPM’s political accusations linking the Muslim League to the crisis as “utter nonsense”, Razak said, “A mosque committee is not something under the UDF or LDF; it is formed by the residents of that locality”. Commenting on the police intervention, he added, “When handling a law and order issue, the police should have shown more caution”.
Meanwhile, Vadakara DySP Biju K K defended the response of the forces, maintaining that officers acted solely to prevent a law-and-order catastrophe.
