Former office-bearers of the women’s campus wing of Indian Union Muslim League on Wednesday levelled serious charges against their male counterparts for unleashing a character assassination campaign tantamount to “verbal rape”.
In their first reaction after the controversy erupted in June, the recently ousted office-bearers of Haritha, the women’s wing of IUML student arm Muslim Students’ Federation, slammed the party leadership for turning a blind eye to their grievances and even a written complaint shared with several top leaders.
Former general secretary of Haritha, Najma Thabsheera, told a news conference in Kozhikode on Wednesday that what they faced was “verbal rape”.
“Like what they say, ‘verbal rape after a rape’,” Thabsheera said, alluding to what they faced after raising their voice against gender inequality and character assassination within the party.
The IUML, which is a constituent of the Opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front, had frozen Haritha in August after 10 of its leaders approached the Kerala Women’s Commission over the alleged misogyny and character assassination with sexually explicit remarks by their MSF counterparts. They also lodged a complaint against MSF state president P.K. Navas and Malappuram district general secretary V. Abdul Vahab. The IUML appointed a new Haritha state committee on Sunday.
Police arrested Navas on Friday for making derogatory remarks based on the Haritha complaint to the women’s commission. But he was released on the same day as the charges were bailable.
The IUML instead removed Fathima Thahliya, national vice-president of the MSF and a former chief of Haritha, and P.P. Shaijal, state vice-president of the MSF, from their party positions for standing up for the aggrieved women.
Thabsheera said it was the MSF president who made derogatory remarks at a working committee meeting held in Kozhikode on June 24. “When I stood up to make my point, he said ‘even prostitutes would have their justifications, so let her speak’. He also said Haritha was being led by a cyber criminal when I sought action against him at that meeting,” she said.
She lashed out at an unnamed IUML general secretary for describing Haritha leaders literally as street walkers. “He said we are women who wander in the Kozhikode market,” said Thabsheera.
Former president of Haritha, Mufeeda Thesni, said they were victims of a well-organised hate campaign. “They have been saying girls from Haritha are feminists who do not want to deliver babies and we opt for abortions even if we conceive.”
She said a section of the MSF questioned even their campaign to encourage women to use menstrual cups instead of sanitary pads. “They questioned our character and intent behind our awareness campaign about menstrual cups,” Thesni said.
She slammed an IUML leader who was assigned to settle the matter by dissuading the girls from proceeding with their complaint. “This person threatened us that he (the MSF president) was in possession of objectionable pictures and videos of several Haritha girls who would have to commit suicide if he circulated them,” Thesni alleged, referring to the tactics used to silence them.
Thabsheera disputed the claim by several IUML and MSF leaders that the girls of Haritha did not approach party leaders for 18 days after the alleged incident. “The incident happened on June 25. We (Haritha) met the following day to decide on the course of action and submitted a five-page complaint to all the senior leaders of IUML on June 27,” she said, adding that they approached the women’s commission when the party failed to act even after 50 days.
Copies of the complaint were sent to senior leaders P.K. Kunhalikutty, E.T. Mohammed Basheer, Panakkad Syed Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal, K.P.A. Majeed and P.M.A. Salam, whom the party later assigned to look into the issue. The party did not react to the allegations.
“This is a larger issue that questions the very identity of girls who are part of this organisation,” Thabsheera said, promising to fight for justice by remaining in the party.
