Kerala Muslim scholar chides event organisers for inviting girl on stage, draws flak

MALAPPURAM: A video, which purportedly showed a Muslim scholar reprimanding the organisers of an event in the district, for inviting a girl on stage has gone viral, sparking protests on the social media. In the video clip aired by news channels, MT Abdulla Musaliyar, a senior functionary of Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama, a body of Muslim scholars, is seen chiding one of the organisers for calling a Class 10 girl student on the dais to receive an award.

The incident occurred during the inauguration of a 'Madrassa' building in the district, where students were felicitated recently. The memento was handed over to the girl by Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader Panakkad Sayed Abbas Ali Shihab Thangal. Soon after the award was handed over, Musaliyar questioned the organisers as to why the girl was invited on stage. "Who invited a Class 10 girl to the stage… If you do this again… Don't call such girls here… Don't you know the rules of Samastha? Were you the one who called her?… Ask her parents to come to the stage to collect the award. Don't do such things while we are sitting here. This will appear in photos and be telecast," a visibly angry Musaliyar was seen telling the organisers, while Thangal was standing next to him.

The person who announced the name of the girl was seen apologising to Musaliyar. Reacting to the incident, Fathima Thahiliya, former national vice president of the Muslim Students Federation (MSF) took to Facebook and said removing girls from stages and insulting them will have far-reaching consequences in the society.

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"The leadership should ensure that the girls with talents are held close to the religion and are encouraged. We should be able to use their abilities for the betterment of society and religion. Keeping them away from the stage and insulting them would result in far-reaching consequences in the society. Those who endure such insults may later hate the religion and its leaders," Thahiliya said. Meanwhile, P K Navas, the state President of MSF came out in support of Musaliyar and blamed certain communal elements for the attack on him.

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"The (online) lynching of honourable M T Usthad is not an innocent one. Such contents in the guise of Islamophobic manner are being spread by certain communal elements. Those who are trying to distort the image of Musaliyar must be isolated," Navas said on his Facebook page. Cine actor Hareesh Peradi criticised the incident and sought to know if the LDF and the UDF will condemn the issue and proclaim that they don't want the vote of Samastha in the upcoming Thrikkakara bypoll. The social media is filled with trolls and criticism against the Samastha leadership.