Malappuram: The funeral of Panakkad Sayyid Hyder Ali Shihab Thangal, the state president of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), who died on Sunday, was held past 2 am on Monday.
The popular leader was laid to rest, with state honours, past midnight at the burial ground of the Juma Masjid at Panakkad here .
Thangal, 74, had breathed his last on Sunday at a private hospital in Angamaly, where he was undergoing treatment for cancer.
The funeral had been planned for 9 am on Monday after national leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, had paid their respects.
However, the Panakkad family took a decision late on Sunday, to prepone the funeral, as thousands kept arriving with requests to witness their beloved leader one last time.
Malappuram Town had come to a standstill, reported Manorama News. The body had been brought to Panakkad by 5 pm and later kept for public homage at the Town Hall.
However, the sea of mourners kept pouring in way past midnight and volunteers and party members failed to control the crowd.
A scholar and beloved leader
A member of the Pukkoya family of Panakkad, Malappuram, he was elected the successor to Panakkad Sayeed Mohammedali Shihab Thangal and became the state president of IUML in 2009.
Before that, he was the Malappuram district president of the League for 18 years.
The heads of the Panakkad family are considered by a major section of Muslims in Kerala as their religious and political figureheads.
A revered religious scholar, he was the head of several religious establishments, institutions and orphanages in Kerala.
As the head of the IUML, Hyder Ali Shihab Thangal maintained a cordial relationship with leaders of other political parties.
IUML is the second largest ally of the opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front in Kerala.
Known for his strict political stances and secular credentials, Hyder Ali Shihab Thangal led the IUML through several crises.
Hyder Ali Shihab Thangal was also the Vice President of the EK faction of Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama, one of the Sunni Muslim organisations in Kerala.
He was born on June 15, 1947 as the third son of PMSA Pukkoya Thangal. The late Panakkad Sayeed Mohammedali Shihab Thangal, Panakkad Umarali Shihab Thangal, Sadhik Ali Shihab Thangal and Abbasali Shihab Thangal are his brothers.
He started his career by becoming the president of the Nurul Ulama, a student organization in Malappuram. He became the founding president of Samastha's student body, the SSF, when it was formed in 1973. He continued in this position until 1979.
Thangal completed his schooling at MM High School in Kozhikode. After completing religious studies from Kannalloor, Pattarnadakkavu and Ponnani, he graduated from Jamia Nooriyya Arabic College in Pattikkadu in 1975.
He is survived by his wife Shareefa Fatima Suhra, children Sajida, Shahida, Naeem Ali Shihab and Mueen Ali Shihab and children-in-law Sayyid Niyas Jiffri Thangal and Saeed Haseeb Sakhaf Thangal.
Leaders pay tributes
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan remembered him as someone who emphasised sustaining religious amity in the state.
Leader of the Opposition in Kerala Assembly V D Satheesan said Thangal was always concerned about peaceful coexistence in society. "Even though he was soft-spoken, his stances were tough. His loss pains the entire state," he said.
Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president K Sudhakaran termed Thangal as one of the gatekeepers of secular Kerala.
Congress leaders Oommen Chandy, Ramesh Chennithala and Assembly Speaker M B Rajesh also offered condolences.
