Former Kerala Health Minister and CPM Central Committee member PK Sreemathy has strongly reacted to the suicide of a young woman following a religious trial conducted by PFI extremists under Sharia law in Kayal, Kannur district. Speaking to the media, PK Sreemathy described the incident as an act of ‘Talibanism’. She stated that the young woman took her life due to a mindset that dictates a Muslim woman should not speak to a man who is not her husband.
Sreemathy’s comments, as a senior leader of the Kerala’s ruling party, reinforce concerns that Sharia law is gaining ground in Kerala and proves the growing belief that extremist organisations like the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) are tightening their grip in Kannur, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s home district, with alleged protection from Vijayan and his son-in-law, Minister Mohammed Riyas.
Raseena, a 40-year-old woman from Kerala, died by suicide after being subjected to a Sharia-style moral trial allegedly conducted by Islamist radicals.
Following her private chat with a male friend, members linked to the banned PFI-SDPI, identified as Mubashir, Faisal, and… pic.twitter.com/4tIsugp0AE
— Organiser Weekly (@eOrganiser) June 19, 2025
According to Sreemathy, the Kayal incident clearly illustrates the horror of extremist activities. She characterised the event not just as a suicide but as a lynching. Drawing a powerful analogy, she likened the young woman’s humiliation to the disrobing of Panchali, stating that the victim was mentally tortured to the point where life itself became unbearable. “Who gave them the authority to take the law into their own hands?” she asked, indicating the failure of Vijayan led left government.
She condemned the incident as a heinous crime, a personal murder against a poor brother and sister, and demanded that not only the three individuals involved but the entire group responsible should be held accountable. “No matter what organisation is behind this, no one should escape justice,” she added. Sreemathy further stated that the incident should have provoked widespread outrage, asserting that no one with even a shred of culture could condone such an act.
The incident took place when the young woman was seen talking to her friend near a car parked by the roadside. PFI extremists held the pair hostage and conducted a public trial. The young man, a native of Mayyil in the same district, was forcibly taken to a Maidan and later to a PFI office, where he was robbed of his mobile phone and tablet and brutally beaten.
Kerala: PFI Sharia trial, guardianship lead to Raseena suicide; Vijayan led left govt silent as radical activities grow
Via: @eOrganiser#Kerala #PFI @pinarayivijayan https://t.co/kZnH58uXsf
— Organiser Weekly (@eOrganiser) June 20, 2025
Unable to endure the public humiliation, the young woman, Raseena, died by suicide at her home in Parambai on Tuesday night. In connection with the incident, three PFI extremists, Mubashir, Faisal and Rafnaz, all natives of Parambai in Kannur, were arrested and remanded by the police.
The religious trial, which led to Raseena’s death, was an attempt to impose an Islamic guardianship model norms, resembling those in some Islamic nations, one that dictates a Muslim woman must not speak to any man other than her husband and should not travel alone.
