KERALA, INDIA, October 15, 2018 (The Hindu): [HPI note: With India’s Supreme Court ordering the Sabarimal Ayappan temple to admit women of child-bearing age, it is useful to see the reaction from Kerela’s Sunni community. According to the Islamic Research Foundation International, “Although the Qur’an and the Hadith, the traditions attributed to the Prophet (Pbuh), allow for women to pray in mosques, in most parts of India, Muslim women are denied this right.” ]
The Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama has warned politicians of “serious electoral consequences” if they meddle in religious issues such as entry of women into Sunni mosques. Opening a Shariat conference here on Saturday, its president Syed Mohammed Jiffri Muthukoya Thangal said politicians need not air their views on religious matters. “The recent statements on women’s entry to Sunni mosques by politicians were not in good taste. They have pained and irritated us. We know who should be admitted to the mosques and who should not. Their demand cannot be implemented,” he said.
Mr. Thangal said the bar on entry of women to mosques was not the sign of any discrimination but a “wise decision” taken by religious scholars considering their safety. The conference was organized by Samastha, the biggest body of Sunni Muslims in the State, in the wake of the recent Sabarimala verdict, the triple divorce ordinance and a bunch of judicial interventions related to the religious practice of the Muslims. “There is a trend to victimise Muslims for each and every issue and a propaganda against us is on. We are law-abiding citizens and we respect the Constitution. But don’t treat our silence as a weakness, we will respond if there is a need. We will legally challenge any bid to question our religious beliefs,” Mr. Thangal added.
Meanwhile, a coordination committee of Muslim organisations has sought the intervention of Parliament and Legislative Assemblies against recent court orders.