Malappuram: A meeting of top leaders of the Muslim League was held in Malappuram to prepare party workers for the upcoming local body and legislative assembly elections. The meeting was chaired by the State President Panakkad Sadikali Shihab Thangal. The National General Secretary P.K. Kunhalikutty MLA inaugurated the session. Members of the state committee, secretariat, and district office bearers attended the meeting.

A resolution was presented condemning the granting of permits for sand mining and criticising various incidents of brutal ragging reported from colleges across the state. The resolution mentioned that SFI (Students' Federation of India) activists were the culprits in the ragging incidents and stated that parents are afraid to send their children to colleges due to these issues. Another resolution was raised against the injustice in the ward division process in local bodies, with the meeting expressing that the hearings on this matter were a farce.

P.K. Kunhalikutty, in a subsequent press conference, said that the Muslim League is observing the political controversies within the Congress. He mentioned that although there may be differences of opinion, the Congress will be able to resolve them. The UDF meeting will be held on February 27 and all major issues will be discussed there. 

He also mentioned that a meeting of community and educational organisations will be held in Kozhikode on March 7 to deliberate on the steps to be taken regarding the Waqf Bill introduced by the Center.State General Secretary PMA Salam also participated in the press conference. 

“Some controversies are actually increasing the chances of UDF”, said Kunhalikutty. After the controversy over Shashi Tharoor’s remarks the public has become quite aware about so many things, said Kunhalikutty. He further said  that if the LDF had cooperated even slightly during the development projects under the UDF, Kerala would have had much greater opportunities.

“When UDF had tried to implement Express Highway, LDF had protested against the project and didn’t cooperate with the government”, he said. “The project could have been implemented at a lower cost and with fewer losses than the current national highway project”. He also noted that the establishment of Kochi as an IT hub and the formation of the Kinfra Park happened during the UDF tenure. All of this has come to light due to this controversy. He pointed out that the CPM's policy towards industries has changed, and if there had been cooperation in the past, Kerala would have been much further along today.