Malappuram: The internal differences in the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) over the State Government's decision to induct its Malappuram district general secretary P Abdul Hameed into the Kerala Bank director board spilled onto the streets here on Friday.
In an apparent suggestion that Hameed has abandoned that party line, posters appeared in front of the IUML district committee office in Malappuram town on Friday calling him 'Judas' (the Biblical character who betrayed Jesus Christ) and asking the leadership to expel him from the party.
With the posters gaining media attention, IUML and Opposition UDF came out to quell rumours of a split in the camp. IUML secretariat member P K Basheer played down the posters and said that there was no rift in the front. “IUML will remain in UDF," Basheer asserted denying the directorship indicated a changing political equation in the state. “This association (of Hameed as Kerala Bank director with the government ) is purely based on the cooperative sector,” he said.
UDF too denied any frontal rift. "There was no discussion in the UDF about Abdul Hameed joining Kerala Bank as a member of the board of directors. At present, I don't have anything more to say," P T Ajay Mohan, Malappuram district UDF convenor, said.
Hameed also played it down saying that anyone can paste a poster on a wall. "IUML is a strong ally in the UDF. The leadership knows about my selection to the bank board. There is no point in connecting it (the board membership) with any kind of change in political ideologies. The association is only restricted to the cooperative sector. At the same time, we would also raise our voice against malpractices in the sector," Hameed said.
Despite the brave front put up by the opposition, political observers say that CPM has managed to score a political point by the appointment, coming as it did in its recent failure to bring IUML on board for its pro-Palestine event.
M K Kannan, another Kerala Bank board member told Onmanorama that Hameed's selection was normal practice. "The UDF has a majority in the cooperative sector in Malappuram and they sent one of its leaders to the board. Media can describe it anyway but it's a welcoming move for us. Both the parties can join hands to protest against the Centre policy that looks to strangle the sector," Kannan said.
As for the IUML, the poster war does point to the trouble it is facing to keep its flock in order, say observers. It may also strain its relationship with other UDF allies, in particular Congress.
IUML was in deep trouble when its national leader E T Muhammed Basheer expressed his willingness to participate in the pro-Palestine event organised by CPM in Kozhikode. After pressure from UDF and from his own party, IUML state president Sadiqali Shihab Thangal declared the League's decision to stay away from the event.
This year alone, CPM made two attempts to take IUML on board its events and League's initial reply was positive. This strengthened the rumour that the party has swayed towards LDF particularly when its relationship with Congress has not been smooth since K Sudhakaran and V D Satheesan took charge of the leadership of the Congress party in Kerala. The latest incident may further strain that relationship.
