KSU's communal barb at MSF during poll victory parade leaves fissures in UDF ahead of local polls

Kozhikode: On Friday, October 10, violence erupted during the counting of votes in the student union election at the University of Calicut's Thenhipalam campus. Activists of the CPM's Students' Federation of India (SFI) clashed with the Congress's Kerala Students' Union (KSU) and its ally, the IUML's Muslim Students' Federation (MSF). SFI alleged that MSF leader P K Mubashir swallowed a ballot paper and KSU activists destroyed others to disrupt counting when SFI was leading by 300 votes, after which outsiders armed with daggers and machetes stormed the campus. MSF state president P K Navas countered that SFI had used fake ballots lacking the returning officer's signature and turned violent when caught. Vice-Chancellor P Raveendran shut down the campus indefinitely for student safety.

The same day, about 60 km away, clashes broke out between CPM and UDF workers in Perambra town in Kozhikode district. Police resorted to lathi charge and tear gas, injuring several, including Vadakara MP and Congress leader Shafi Parambil. The march had been organised to protest against the election violence that had erupted two days earlier (October 8) at CKG Memorial Government College, Perambra, a campus named after Gandhian C K Govindan Nair. But Shafi Parambil branded the assault by the police as an attempt to divert attention from the Sabarimala gold theft case.

Nevertheless, under attack from the SFI and the police, the UDSF should have stood united. Instead, fissures have widened. In Koduvally- represented by IUML's M K Muneer- the KSU, after winning a college election against its own ally, took out a victory march publicly branding the MSF as a communal outfit. Meanwhile, in Muttil, under Kalpetta constituency, the MSF celebrated its win by warning that Congress leaders T Siddique and I C Balakrishnan would not see the Assembly again if they failed to rein in the KSU.

Despite efforts by senior leaders, the hostility between the two organisations- earlier confined to a few colleges- has now spilled beyond campuses and threatens to influence the upcoming local body elections. IUML leader K K A Khadir further inflamed tensions, dragging Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra into the feud. "In these troubled times, our secularism- which gave shelter to Indira's grandchildren- does not need a new certificate from them (KSU)," he wrote on his Facebook page. His profile picture is of him standing with Rahul Gandhi.

Meanwhile, around 50 academics, writers, and social workers have denounced the KSU's campaign against the MSF as "Islamophobic". 

"In the Indian context, Islamophobia goes a step further by denying Muslims the right to organise and assert their political and cultural identity," their statement said. Signatories include feminist scholar J Devika, historian and writer Malavika Binny, filmmaker Prashanth Ezhavan, actors Lali P M and Jolly Chirayath, social activist Gargyan Sudheeran, and Abdullah Abdul Hameed, a Delhi University teacher and Congress manifesto committee member.

Former MLA and IUML leader K M Shaji sided with the academics. "If I raise my voice for my community, I am labelled communal. But when Vellappally (Natesan) abuses another community, he is called a renaissance leader. What kind of double standard is this? Mind you, he is not advocating for the rights of the Ezhava community, he is targeting the Muslim community," he said.

'MSF lost, secularism won'
Koduvally Muslim Orphanage (KMO) College has long been an MSF stronghold, with KSU as its principal rival on campus. This time, however, KSU swept 18 of the 21 seats, leaving MSF with only the posts of Joint Secretary and representatives for the first- and second-year degree courses.

After the thumping victory, KSU leaders P C Fijaz and Philip John- members of the Kozhikode District Congress Committee- led a celebratory march to Koduvally town with a banner that read: 'MSF Lost, Secularism Won, KSU KMO College'.

The banner enraged the IUML and MSF leadership. "Instead of censuring the KSU leaders who carried it, we saw Congress leaders justifying it," said Misbah Kaivelikkadavu, president of the MSF's Koduvally Assembly Constituency Committee. "We've won here for years and taken out victory marches too, but never abused KSU. We always saw these elections as friendly contests," he added.

With the Congress taking no action, the MSF constituency committee announced on Saturday that it would suspend cooperation with the UDF until disciplinary steps were taken against the KSU, Youth Congress and Congress leaders involved. "They humiliated us publicly by calling us communal. The 41-member working committee decided unanimously not to let it pass," Misbah said.

Fijaz, meanwhile, rejected the allegations, accusing the MSF of playing victim. "When I joined the college in 2019, MSF wouldn't even let us hoist our flag. KSU didn't have a unit then. That year, three others and I formed one and won a seat," he said.

But that year, MSF activists told Congress Lok Sabha candidate M K Raghavan they and their families wouldn't vote for him if Fijaz accompanied him to the campus. "I was made to wait outside the college when he came seeking votes," he said. "That day, I decided I would win this college for the Congress."

Misbah admitted he admired Fijaz's persistence but said the issue was about the banner, not rivalry. "Branding us communal crossed a line," he said.

Fijaz defended the banner's wording: "There were three lines: 'MSF Lost', which is a fact;  'Secularism Won', that's about us, we are secular; and 'KSU KMO College'. Where's the problem?"

Youth Congress Koduvally mandalam president Muneeb Nellankandy urged MSF to accept the explanation. "We don’t consider MSF non-secular. The friendly fights are because of disagreement over seat sharing, not ideological. There's no need to read between the lines," he said. He also hinted that there would be no action against Fijaz or Philip John, appreciating their work. "Any disciplinary move will be considered only if the UDF committee demands it," he said.

However, in a bid to counter the MSF demand, the Youth Congress plans to seek action against IUML Koduvally general secretary K K A Khadir for his remark that "IUML gave shelter to Indira's grandchildren". "Wayanad has been a Congress seat for decades," Muneeb said. "It's not as if IUML gave up its seat for our leaders."

Misbah dismissed Fijaz's defence outright. "He routinely calls MSF communal. That's why we didn’t want him accompanying Raghavan," he said.

Koduvally has four colleges where student elections are held: KMO College, where the contest is between KSU and MSF; CHMKM Government Arts and Science College and IHRD College of Applied Science, Thamarassery, where SFI faces UDSF; and Golden Hills Arts and Science College, Elettil. This year, UDSF reclaimed IHRD from SFI but lost CHMKM. "For the first time, KSU contested against MSF at Golden Hills. Though KSU lost, the same leadership has deepened the rift between the two organisations in one more college," Misbah said.

On the MSF’s banner in Kalpetta that aimed Congress MLAs T Siddique and I C Balakrishnan, Misbah said it targeted individuals, not the party. KSU Wayanad district president Adv Goutham Gokuldas also downplayed it, saying it was "over-enthusiastic college children" acting on their own.

Muneeb said minor campus rivalries in Malabar usually don’t affect the IUML-Congress alliance.

Koduvally is the IUML’s biggest stronghold outside Malappuram district. Of the 120 wards across the eight local bodies in the assembly segment, 63 are held by the Muslim League and 32 by the Congress. Though the Congress is the junior partner, it heads two panchayats -- a sign of cooperation within the alliance. "This time, though, the campus fight has spilled beyond the college gates. I admit that KSU breached alliance decorum," Muneeb said. "And the Left ecosystem has amplified it on social media, and now academics have joined in. We need to resolve it quickly."