Ajmal V for BeyondHeadlines
Calicut : The history of the Muslim leaders who sacrificed their life and blood for the course of the country’s freedom struggle were tarnished by the people with hideous and vested intentions, said K Rahman Khan, Union Minister for Minority Affairs. He was inaugurating the closing ceremony of the three days long Kerala Muslim History conference at the JDT Islam Campus in Calicut.
‘Our history textbooks hesitate to provide deserved space for the names of the Muslim scholars and scientists who chose martyrdom in the struggle of 1857’ said Rahman Khan. ‘Tipu Sultan is among those great warriors whose history was always sidelined and misrepresented. He was portrayed as a religious fanatic and his social reformations have always been denigrated by the historians.’
Rahman Khan added that the national heritage Taj Mahal is now depicted as an erstwhile temple and Qutub Minar as a monument which was built by a Hindu ruler. The derailment of existing social harmony is the main motive of those polluted minds. He also emphasized the need for the compilation and regaining of the glorious history of Muslims and their rich heritage.
There is a conscious effort in marginalizing the prominent minorities of the country -Muslims, opined T Arifali, Ameer Jamate Islami Kerala in his presidential address of the session.
‘The projection of the flaws and faults of Muslims are wide-spread. At the same time mainstream ignores the sacrifices and dedicatons of Muslims toward the nation building. This paradoxy questions the credence of secular historians’, Arifali said. He suggested to include Kerala Muslim history in the Madrassa syllabuses along with their personas. Muslim confidence definetly matter on the awareness of their heritage and traditions, added Arifali.
M I Shanavas MP; P T A Raheem M L A; T K Hamza Ex-MP; Abdul Hameed Vaniyambalam, State President Welfare Party Kerala; Dr. Fazal Gafoor, President M E S; Abdushukkoor Qasimi, Muslim Personal Law Board Member; M I Abdul Azeez, Assistant Ameer, JIH Kerala; Engineer Muhammad Koya; Dr P C Anwar; P Mujeeb Rahman, JIH State General Secretary; K Safiya Ali, JIH Woman’s Wing State President;T Muhammad Velom, State President Solidarity Youth Movement; S Irshad, SIO State President and P Ruksana, GIO State President also addressed the gathering. Coordinator Shihab Pookkottur welcomed the session and Faizal Paingottayi thanked the gathering in the concluding session.
The History Conference
The conference aimed to enquire the history of Kerala Muslims. About 200 hundred papers were presented under various topics in different sessions on four stages in three days by scholars, students and pioneers of history. The prominant historians like MGS Narayanan, Dr. KKN Kurupp, Dr. Hun San Ho from Duke University, London, Dr. T. Jamal Muhammed etc participated in the conference and presented their views.
Manjalamkuzhi Ali, the Minister for Minority Affairs Kerala State had inagurated the History Conference on 22nd December, Sunday. Prominent Columnist and Professor of the Catholic University, Australia Dr. Irfan Ahamad was the chief guest in inagural session. E.T. Muhammad Basheer MP and leaders of Muslim organisations like Sayyid Munavarali Shihab Thangal, Prof. K A Sideeq Hassan, Adv.K. P Muhammad, C.P Kunju Muhammad and C.P Umar Sullami delivered speaches. Kerala Muslim Heritage foundation Chairman Sheikh Muhamed Karakkunnu presided the inagural session.
With the mass participations over 2000 people from all strata of society was the main speciality of the conference. An exhibition ‘Paithrukam’ or the Heritage, presented the unique Muslim heritage of the state on the parallel to the academic sessions. That was the major attraction of the conference. Cultural eve in the nights consisting Muslim traditional arts like Kolkkali, Tattumpattum and Mappila Songs brought to the conference to more colourful.
