CPM leader claims that if the UDF wins, Jamaat-e-Islami will run the Home Department.

Senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader AK Balan’s assertion that the Home Department would be “handled by Jamaat-e-Islami” if the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) took power sparked a political slugfest in Kerala. The Congress, Jamaat-e-Islami, and the BJP all responded sharply.

Speaking in Palakkad, Balan said, “If the UDF comes to power under any circumstances, the BJP will destroy it in two days. That should be seen seriously by Malayalis. Not just that, Jamaat-e-Islami will be handling the Home Department if they come to power.”

Additionally, he made reference to communal violence, claiming that it would result in “not just one or two Maradu riots” and that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) were adopting stances that would facilitate this eventuality. VD Satheesan, the leader of the opposition, harshly criticized the CPI(M) and referred to Balan’s remarks as a divisive campaign.

“The statement that if UDF comes to power, Jamaat-e-Islami will handle the Home Department is a campaign similar to what Sangh Parivar is doing in the entire country,” Satheesan said.

Drawing a parallel with past elections, he added, “In Gujarat, in one of the Assembly elections, the BJP’s campaign was that if Congress wins, Ahmed Patel will be the Chief Minister.”

Satheesan alleged that “the Sangh Parivar strategy to create divide between the majority and minority community is being used by Balan through this statement,” and claimed that Balan made the remarks “with the knowledge of CPI(M) leadership.”

Balan received a legal notice from Jamaat-e-Islami Hind requesting that he retract his remarks accusing him of inciting communal violence. The organization demanded Rs 1 crore in compensation and threatened to bring both criminal and civil lawsuits if the remarks were not taken down. The comments were allegedly intended to “ensure votes of other communities by creating fear against a Muslim organization ahead of the Assembly elections,” according to Jamaat-e-Islami. Amir P Mujeeb Rahman of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind Kerala responded to the incident by claiming that the comments represented Sangh Parivar philosophy.

Referring to MS Golwalkar’s book ‘Bunch of Thoughts’, he said, “It says internal enemies are more dangerous than external enemies. Those internal enemies are Muslims, Christians and Communists.”

He alleged that Kerala was witnessing a dangerous shift, saying, “If Yogi Adityanath conducting bulldozer justice and Narendra Modi troubling the Muslim community are criticised, then political parties in Kerala are also attacking minority communities.”

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the state president of the BJP, accused the Congress and the IUML of having an alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami. He asserted that Jamaat-e-Islami and IUML had united to defeat National Democratic Alliance candidates in a number of locations, including Kodungallur.

In response to Balan’s reference to the Marad riots, Chandrasekhar stated that the CPI(M) ought to consider its own previous partnerships and that the growing power of Jamaat and its purported connections to the Congress and IUML were “a matter of concern for every Malayali.”