Sopanam exponent, writers & woman Dalit leader; IUML‘s socio-cultural experiment with latest organisational rejig

Malappuram: The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has inducted non-Muslim faces as part of an organisational reshuffle in a curated move to build a secular, progressive image.

The appointment of Shyam Sundar, a former state treasurer of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), as the IUML’s state vice-president is the most significant indication of this approach. He is the first non-Muslim to hold the post, which has traditionally been occupied by senior party leaders.

The party is also considering several non-Muslim leaders and personalities for positions in government boards and corporations. Among those whose names have figured in the list prepared by the party leadership are Jayanthi Rajan, Njeralath Harigovindan and writer P Surendran, according to party sources.

The move is seen as an attempt to give organisational and political recognition to people from outside the party's traditional social base, while also sending a message that newcomers can find a place in the League's leadership structure.

Shyam Sundar, a native of Pallassana in Alappuzha, was a senior DYFI leader. He left the CPM in 2010, during the period of intense factional rivalry between V S Achuthanandan and Pinarayi Vijayan. He subsequently joined the IUML and rose through the ranks of its farmers' organisation, the Swathanthra Karshaka Sangham. In 2016, he served as chairman of United Electrical Industries, an undertaking under the Industries Department.

After his appointment as vice-president, Shyam Sundar said the party had entrusted him with a major responsibility.

“Those who do not know or understand the party are the ones who accuse the Muslim League of being communal. I have been with the League for 16 years, and during this period, I have never witnessed anything within the party based on religion. My appointment as state vice-president shows that the party recognises its workers,” he said.

Njeralath Harigovindan, son of the late Sopanam exponent Njeralath Ramapothuval, joined the IUML ahead of the Assembly election. The party is actively considering his name for a position in a government cultural institution, according to sources.

Writer and Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award winner P Surendran, who has maintained close relations with the League, is also understood to be among the party's nominees for a position in a cultural institution. His association with the party became more prominent after he took charge as editor of Chandrika periodicals, which function under the IUML.

Jayanthi Rajan, a Dalit leader from Wayanad and national assistant secretary of the IUML, is another prominent name being considered for a key position in a board or corporation. She has previously served as national general secretary of the Women's League and as state president of the Dalit League.

Jayanthi began working with the IUML in 2008 and became a party member in 2010. She was elected to the Puthadi panchayat in 2010 from a women's reserved seat and later served as standing committee chairperson of the Panamaram Block Panchayat.

The list of IUML nominees also includes former MLA P Abdul Hameed, former Malappuram municipal chairperson Mujeeb Kaderi, M C Mayin Haji, Shafi Chaliyam, P M Sadiqali, C P Saithalavi, Umar Pandikashala and Zuhra Mambad. They are being considered for chairperson posts in boards and corporations, as well as for membership and other positions.

The IUML's move comes against the backdrop of the agreement reached within the United Democratic Front (UDF) on the distribution of chairperson posts in boards and corporations. Under the arrangement, the IUML will get 20 chairperson posts, while the Kerala Congress will get seven and the RSP three. The other UDF constituents will get one chairperson post each.