Vellappally’s argument bogus, says MES

Says allegation of minority appeasement is misleading

The Muslim Educational Society (MES) has termed SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan’s allegations of “minority appeasement” by the two major political fronts of the State “completely untrue and without any basis.”

Addressing a press conference here on Tuesday, MES president Fazal Gafoor said Mr. Natesan was resorting to such “seriously misleading” statements out of desperation to forge a political alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and thus come to the power.

Citing from statistics of sanctioning educational and other institutions for different communities in the State during the last several decades, Dr. Fazal Gafoor said such an allegation could not be proved by any means. “I have the entire statistics with me,” he said.

It is unfortunate that Mr. Natesan is using the minority communities in a completely unfair way to achieve his political ends, he added.

The MES president stated that it was a committee with Mr. Natesan as chairman and himself as the convener that had fought the case in the Supreme Court against reservation for economically backward students among the forward communities for PG courses in aided colleges when it was introduced by E.T. Muhammed Basheer of Muslim League, when he was the Education Minister more than a decade ago.

“He should clarify his stand on this crucial issue at least now before he forms a political party,” said Dr. Fazal Gafoor.

He said the IUML was a political party like any other party in the State and it was not right to consider their political demands as communal ones.

At the same time, he also cautioned the Muslim League against creating situations that could be falsely interpreted as communal, especially in the changing political scenario.

Not scared

Dismissing the prospects of the SNDP’s new political party or their alliance with the BJP making any serious impact in the State’s political scene, the MES leader said the MES was not scared of any such prospects.

“Our faith in the collective secular consciousness of this State is that strong,” he said.