Malabaris seek return of composite culture

MUMBAI: Members of the

Bombay Kerala Muslim Jamaath

, one of the oldest organisations of Keralites in the city, said they will support the “secular parties which can safeguard the

Constitution

and the country’s composite culture”.


Founded in 1948 and headquartered at Dongri, the Jamaath has over 7,000 members, majority of whom are also members of Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), alliance partner of the Congress in Kerala. “Given the situation in the country, we are committed to back the candidates from

secular parties

as rights enshrined in our Constitution are threatened. We will vote for the parties which uphold India’s celebrated Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb (

composite culture

),” said the Jamaath president Abdul Rehman C H.

Many members of the Jamaath greeted Congress MLA Amin Patel warmly when he toured the Dongri area on Sunday seeking votes for the party’s Mumbai South seat candidate Milind Deora. The Jamaath’s general secretary, V A Kader, said the Jamaath is a non-political outfit meant for a social purpose though most of its members belong to IUML. “We don’t release any political statement from this platform but, as Indians, we would like the parties which can protect our Constitution to win,” said Kader.

Also called

Malabaris

since they come from the coast of Malabar, these Keralite Muslims came to Mumbai in the 1930s. They lived in small rooms and named them after their village, taluka or districts Jamaaths. Then IUML leader CH Mohammed Koya, who later became Kerala chief minister for a brief period, addressed a meeting of all the Jamaaths at Qaisar Baugh in Dongri in 1948, and the Bombay Kerala Muslim Jamaath was formed under his guidance. Koya inaugurated the Jamaath’s own building in 1971.

From making arrangements for burials of fellow Keralites to sheltering transit passengers to and from the Gulf to Kerala and helping cancer patients, the Jamaath reaches out to Keralites whenever needed. “When thousands of Keralites were evacuated from Kuwait during the 1990 Gulf war, our Jamaath helped those who landed in Mumbai. We also provided help to Latur earthquake victims,” said the Jamaath’s managing committee member, M A Khalid.