Muslim League, the second largest constituent in the Congress-led UDF in Kerala is on the verge of a ‘civil war’ as party supremo Hyder Ali Shihab Thangal’s son has raised a revolt against P K Kunhalikutty, general secretary of the League. Syed Mueen Ali Shihab Thangal alleged during a press meet held at League House, the party head quarters, on Thursday that Kunhalikutty was the cause for the major embarrassment faced by party chief Shihab Ali Thangal who was recently interrogated by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with money laundering to the tune of Rs 10 crore.
The fact that Mueen Ali used the party head quarters itself as a venue to fire salvos at Kunhalikutty, considered as the strong man of Muslim League, shows that all is not well with the party. “Kunhalikutty has been the party treasurer for the last 40 years and has not furnished any statement of accounts during this period. All leaders are afraid of him and are reluctant to disclose these details,” said Mueen Ali.
He alleged that Kunhalikutty was behind the sudden hospitalisation of Hyder Ali Shihab Thangal. “This is the first time in the history of the party a member of our family has been summoned by an investigating agency and it is because of Kunhalikutty,” he alleged.
Though the Muslim League leadership had kept the news about Hyder Ali Shihab Thangal’s interrogation by the Enforcement Directorate a secret, K T Jaleel, former minister in the LDF Government revealed on Thursday that the investigating agency had indeed questioned the former.
This was in connection with money laundering and misuse of the party’s mouth piece Chandrika for the same. Hyder Ali Shihab Thangal is the chairman and managing director of the daily. Moyeen Ali is the vice president of Youth League, the youth wing of the party The Muslim League in Kerala has always been headed by the senior member of the Thangal family from Kodappanakkal in Malappuram. Syed Abdul Rehman Bafakki Thangal was succeeded by his son-in-law Mohammed Ali Shihab Thangal who in turn was succeeded by his younger brother Hyder Ali who is the present head of the party.
There is widespread resentment among the party cadre against the “extra-constitutional power” wielded in the League by Kunhalikutty. League insiders whisper that the party leadership was being used by Kunhalikutty as per his whims and fancies.
The set back suffered by the party in the recent assembly election is being attributed to the “hunger for power” by Kunhalikutty by these sections who are reluctant to question him in public.
The League leadership is meeting on Saturday at Kozhikode to take stock of the situation arising out of Mueen Ali’s outbursts.