A Jamaath of a mosque in Kerala is under the radar for allegedly opposing people belonging to the “lower strata” of Muslim community from participating in general meetings. The alleged move by the Jamaath received flak from progressive organisations in the state. Jamaath is a collective of Muslims in a locality.
According to PTI, the office bearers of Puthoorpally Muslim Jamaath mosque allegedly made those engaged in occupations like haircutting stay away from the meeting. The Jamaath had reportedly stated that the decision was taken since traditionally their ancestors were prohibited from attending the meet.
The incident took place near Changanassery.
Anish Sali, a resident of the place said that his family received a notice a couple of days ago after he attended a meeting.
However, Jamaath opposed the allegation. The Jamaath said that the allegations were "baseless" and were aimed by "certain centres" to defame it.
In a statement, Jamaath said, "A section of the community was not invited to the general meeting as they were earning wages from the Jama'ath."
Meanwhile, Indian Muslims for Secular Democracy (IMSD), a forum of Indian Muslims committed to the values of democracy, secularism, equality and justice requested Kerala government and police to take "strong action against these hate-mongers who hold casteist/racist beliefs".
"If not we will take action against them in our own manner," it said in a statement.
Dalit Pasmanda Collective Justice Project (DPCJP) condemned the alleged caste discrimination in the mosque. In a tweet, DPSJP said, "We stand in solidarity with the Dalit Pasmanda Collective Justice Project (DPCJP), who have condemned such blatant discrimination by the ‘Puthoorpally Muslim Jamaath’ mosque in Changanassery, Kerala."