Kozhikode: A controversy has erupted within the Indian Union Muslim League's women’s wing after the organisation's first state committee meeting, following the IUML's strong performance in the Kerala Assembly elections.

Vanitha League state president Suhra Mampad came under sharp criticism from sections of party workers after she shared details of the meeting on Facebook without prominently mentioning Fathima Thahiliya, who made history by becoming IUML’s first-ever woman MLA with her victory from the Perambra Assembly constituency. IUML won a total of 22 seats in the recent assembly elections.

The controversy intensified as several cadres questioned why Thahiliya was reportedly not invited to the Vanitha League state committee meeting and why the organisation had allegedly failed to publicly celebrate her historic victory. The criticism soon snowballed into a cyber attack, with abusive comments and body-shaming targeting Suhra Mampad in the comment sections of her social media posts.

Amid mounting criticism, Suhra Mampad issued a strongly worded Facebook post on Tuesday, asserting that she would not be intimidated by cyber attacks or abusive campaigns. Stating that she had faced far greater challenges during her political journey, the senior leader said the party’s electoral success was also the result of the tireless efforts of Vanitha League workers across Kerala.

“Who are you trying to intimidate, you so-called cyber tigers? Did you think I would get scared just because you posted a few comments and sent abusive messages in my inbox?” Suhra wrote in the post, accusing critics of turning a positive organisational meeting into an opportunity to attack both the party and the Vanitha League.

She said she had never publicly spoken against the party over seat allocation or any internal matter and questioned the motive behind the organised criticism. Expressing disappointment over the abusive remarks directed at her, she said many of those attacking her were activists whom she had treated “like children” throughout her political career.

Suhra also highlighted the organisational strength of the Vanitha League, noting that the women’s wing has a state committee, 14 district committees, 106 constituency committees, around 500 panchayat committees, and hundreds of unit committees across Kerala.

“None of this was built overnight. It is the result of years of hard work, sacrifice, blood and sweat,” she said, adding that women leaders of her generation entered politics at a time when women hesitated to contest elections or appear in public life and had endured severe criticism even then.

The Vanitha League leader further said she had worked tirelessly for the party in elections and organisational activities from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram and rejected allegations that she was driven by jealousy or personal ambition.

“If I had been driven by selfish ambition, I could have secured parliamentary positions long ago. But I have always believed that the party is bigger and the movement is our real strength,” she stated.

Suhra Mampad also clarified that she had congratulated Thahiliya during her speech at the state committee meeting and had personally conveyed her wishes to the newly elected MLA. She noted that videos of her speech were publicly available online even before the controversy erupted over her Facebook post.