Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan has criticised a Muslim scholar who rebuked the organisers of an event in Malappuram for inviting a girl on stage for facilitation.
In a series of tweets posted by the official Twitter handle of the Kerala Governor, Shri Arif Mohammad Khan said that it was another example of Muslim women being pushed into seclusion “in total defiance of Qur’anic commands.”
“Sad to know that a young talented girl was humiliated on stage in Malappuram district while receiving a well deserved award simply because she was born into a Muslim family,” Shri Arif Mohammad Khan said in a tweet.
“This is yet another example of how Muslim clerics continue to push hard Muslim women into seclusion and suppress their personality in total defiance of Qur’anic commands and provisions of the Constitution,” the Kerala governor tweeted. 
“Holy Qur’an says – ” And women shall have rights similar to the rights against them according to what is fair and reasonable, but men have an added degree of RESPONSIBILITY towards them -2.228,” he added.
A senior leader of Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama, MT Abdulla Musaliyar had berated the organisers of a students’ felicitation ceremony for inviting a girl student on stage to receive an award.
In the video, the senior leader was seen asking the organisers whether they don’t know the Samastha rules and angrily shouting at them for calling her upon the stage.
“Who invited a tenth standard student here on the stage? If you do this again, I will show you. Do not call such girls over here. Don’t you know Samastha’s rules? Invite the parents here. Were you the one who called (her)? Don’t do such things while we are sitting here. Won’t this come in photos?,” the senior leader Musaliyar asked angrily.
Samastha, a Muslim Sunni scholarly body was felicitating students in Malappuram. After the video went viral on social media, the Samastha leader was heavily criticised by ex-Muslim groups and various nationalist groups.
However, the left-liberal activists and feminists are keeping mum on the incident, fearing the wrath of Islamist groups in the state. This duplicity of the self-proclaimed liberals and feminists has also come under severe criticism as they refuse to raise voice against the repression of women in Islam.
Khan also said he was deeply disappointed that the political leadership in Kerala chose to stay silent. “I am so deeply disappointed that the whole political leadership is silent about it. Not just the political leadership, even the others are silent about it. I appeal to the national leadership of every party to come forward to protect the dignity and honour of our daughters. This is no less than murder, because the shock you have given to that girl… how is she going to recoup?”
The governor added that the girl is seen wearing a hijab in the video, but still there was objection to her being on stage.
“I have been saying right from the beginning that they are not campaigning for hijab. This is a conspiracy to push back women into the four walls of the house. So that they lose their interest in education and imprison themselves in the four walls of the house. She is wearing hijab; why are you objecting and insulting her? Because your ultimate purpose is not hijab,” he added.
