Religious scholars cannot be denied freedom to express opinions: KT Jaleel backs Kanthapuram amid controversy over anti-woman remarks

MALAPPURAM: CPI(M) leader K T Jaleel has backed Samastha leader Kanthapuram A P Aboobacker Musliyar amid the controversy over his anti-woman remarks.
In a Facebook post, Jaleel said nobody could deny religious scholars the freedom to express their opinions. He said Hindu ascetics, Christian priests and Muslim scholars express their views with the aim of promoting the moral advancement of society, and that modern society has the right to agree or disagree with such views.

Jaleel said Kanthapuram was a religious scholar who speaks on matters related to religious injunctions. He said some of the things he says may be acceptable to the general public while others may not be. “That is natural,” Jaleel said.
He said religious scholars could not be denied their freedom to express such views. At the same time, he said progressive forces had the right to oppose anything that infringed upon the rights guaranteed by the Indian Constitution.

Jaleel said the differing opinions that emerged during the controversy over the entry of women into Sabarimala should also be considered in this context. He cautioned against creating the kind of uproar over the present issue that was not seen then.
Jaleel said that, to his understanding, the conduct of women leaders of the Indian Union Muslim League, the stand taken by the MSF’s women’s wing Haritha and the silence of the League on the issue had led to considerable discussion among Muslims, particularly Sunnis, as these were seen as contrary to the general beliefs of Islam. It was in this context, he said, that Kanthapuram Aboobacker Musliyar made the statement to caution Muslims.

Jaleel further claimed that Muslim League state president Panakkad Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal, who is also a qazi of hundreds of mosques, P K Kunhalikutty, Samadani MP and Wahab MP had refrained from intervening in the controversy.
He said Muslim scholars could not ignore the issue when the League itself, while working in the name of the community, diluted for political gains the principles believed in by the same community.

Referring to a statement by Samastha president Jifri Muthukoya Thangal in response to remarks by second-rung League leaders who had supported Kanthapuram, Jaleel said it was particularly relevant.
Jaleel cited Jifri’s remark, “Supporting alone is not enough; it must also be implemented,” saying that if League leaders supported Islam’s view of women, they should also implement it in the Women’s League and Haritha.
Jaleel said people could openly express their views in a democratic society, but everyone should also recognise the freedom of others to accept or reject those views.

He said Kanthapuram had neither asked everyone to accept what he had said from the following day nor said that those who did not follow it would be boycotted by the community. As long as he had not said so, Jaleel said, there was no point in attacking him.
Jaleel cited Voltaire, saying democratic-minded people should follow the principle of defending a person’s freedom to express an opinion even when they disagree with it.