Malappuram: With controversies rocking the Muslim League one after the other, the party leadership has decided to convene its crucial working committee meeting, the first one after assembly polls.
The ten-member committee which was entrusted by the leadership to finalise the agenda for the working committee meeting will meet at the party headquarters League House in Kozhikode on August 14. The working committee meeting is expected to be held soon.
The proposed working committee meeting is considered decisive as it is being held in the backdrop of rival groups demanding and opposing a change in leadership. Meanwhile, the party leaders denied reports that serious differences had cropped up during the meeting held to discuss issues raised by Muyeen Ali Shihab Thangal.
Though a section in the party had demanded the convening of a working committee meeting after assembly polls, the meet got delayed owing to various reasons. The delay in holding the working committee meeting came under sharp criticism at the party leadership meet held last week.
It goes without saying that the lapses in finalising candidates for assembly polls and allegations of financial irregularities related to party mouthpiece Chandrika will come up for animated discussions at the working committee meeting. Besides, the proposed meeting is also expected to witness some fireworks on how the demand of a section of leaders for leadership change would give the enemies a stick to beat the Muslim League with.
The party leadership has denied reports that there were differences of opinion among leaders at the high power committee meeting held in Malappuram.
High power committee member K P A Majeed said that that all those who took part in the meeting felt that Muyeen Ali's actions were wrong and demanded action on the matter. At the same time, everyone was firm that nothing should be done that could cause mental agony to Muslim League president Panakkad Hyderali Shihab Thangal who is currently under treatment.
According to party leaders, the Panakkad family members told the meeting that the matter should be brought to the notice of Hyderali Shihab Thangal before taking suitable action.
Expert committee to probe
Kozhikode - A high-level expert committee will look into the issues related to party mouthpiece Chandrika.
All issues including the allegations levelled by the staff in a letter submitted earlier would be examined by the expert panel.
The Chandrika staff had given complaints to Muslim League leaders earlier raising a number of allegations including donations collected for the newspaper, mounting losses, the circumstances under which Rs 10 crore was deposited in the paper's account during demonetization, the non-remittance if PF amount deducted from the salaries of the staff, donations collected from abroad for modernisation of the newspaper and Rs 16 crore received on account of adding annual subscriptions.
Party is important, not individuals: League leaders
Kozhikode: Dr M K Muneer and K M Shaji have cautioned against Muslim League turning into an individual-centric party.
Both the leaders pointed out that the party was more important than individuals and that they would continue to register differences of opinion and criticism within the party fora.
Significantly the two leaders came out with a stand that indirectly supported Muslim Youth League leader Muyeen Ali Shihab Thangal and that too just a day after the high power committee termed the public statement of Hyderali Shihab Thangal's son as "wrong."
Muneer said the issues raised by Muyeen Ali had been discussed earlier on many occasions and these would be taken up again. "The reports that Kunhalikutty was isolated in the higher power committee are wrong. People may express their opinions but what is most important is the final decision," he said.
K M Shaji said in a Facebook post that criticism and difference of opinion are part of strengthening democracy and making the democratic process vibrant. Though Shaji said that the developments taking place in the Muslim League were also part of this process, he changed the contents of his Facebook post soon after.
"The decisions taken by the Muslim League were the result of the high democratic values upheld by leaders including Panakkad family and P K Kunhhalikutty," Shaji wrote in his second Facebook post.
Shaji clarified that the second post was written as the first one had been misinterpreted and taken out of context.
