Kerala Waqf Board protests called off after government reaches consensus with Sunni faction

A planned statewide agitation against the reconstitution of the Kerala Waqf Board has been called off after direct talks between the state government and Sunni leadership produced an amicable consensus on minority representation.

The Kerala Muslim Jamaat, backed by the Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliar faction of the Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama, announced on Tuesday evening that it had withdrawn its planned district demonstrations scheduled for 22 October. The decision followed high-level assurances from the administration addressing the group's concerns over its omission from the newly reconstituted statutory body.

Ministerial talks in Kozhikode

The breakthrough came after the Minister for General Education and Minority Welfare, N. Samsudheen, visited the Kanthapuram faction's headquarters at Karanthur in Kozhikode on Tuesday to hold talks directly with Mr Musliar and other senior leaders.

Following the discussions, the minister said the government had acted strictly in accordance with statutory requirements and had never sought to marginalise any community body.

"They will have a nominee on the board," Samsudheen said, explaining that appointments across mandated quotas had restricted openings in the general category. "During the reconstitution, we have had to consider the representation of various categories, which led to the present problem. The government did not deliberately try to exclude anyone."

Samsudheen added that leaders who could not be accommodated on the Waqf Board itself would be considered for positions on other key statutory panels, including minority welfare bodies and the state Haj Committee.

The reconstituted board

The dispute emerged after the state government dissolved the earlier Waqf Board led by K.S. Hamsa and appointed a fresh nine-member statutory board headed by Indian Union Muslim League leader M.C. Mayin Haji. The Kerala High Court declined to intervene or stay the government's notification, having dismissed two petitions challenging the restructuring.

Swift resolution ensures stability

Tensions had mounted over the weekend when the Kanthapuram faction, which administers substantial Waqf endowments across Kerala, boycotted a meeting convened in Kozhikode by Muslim Coordination Committee chairman and IUML state president Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal. Leaders had argued that the reconstitution ran contrary to earlier assurances given by Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan.

Parallel discussions led by Industries Minister P.K. Kunhalikutty helped pave the way for Tuesday's direct ministerial visit. The Kerala Muslim Jamaat confirmed in an official statement that it was satisfied with the government's transparent approach and commitments, restoring harmony and concluding the matter without disruption.