By Abdul Basith MA, TwoCircles.net,
Malappuram: The Muslim woman Vice President of Pookotoor Village Panchayat in Malappuram district has resigned from the post and village Panchayat membership citing arrogance behaviour of male colleagues.
Ms Mariyumma said she had got ‘fed up with the male supremacy and arrogant behaviour of her male colleagues in the governing body.’ She was elected to the post on Indian Union Muslim League [IUML] ticket. At present she is also the President of IUML women’s wing in the Pookotoor Panchayat.
She says that the party leaders had asked her to take part only in those board meetings of the governing body and nothing else. “This attitude has forced me to make an urgent decision regarding the resignation”, she said.
“The undue supremacy shown by village Panchayat members including K Muhammed Mansoor and TV Ismail prevented me from delivering my official duties”, she alleged.
She said that there were attempts to spoil her image by even recording and spreading her private phone calls, where she once spoke against another woman Panchayat member for getting her daughter married before she turned 18. Mariyumma was then told not to attend any other meetings than the Panchayat League committee board meeting. She wanted to discuss this issue but the party leadership deployed regulations like asking her not to come to the Panchayath on other occasions.
She says that to enact this regulation and decision the local IUML leaders went to the extent of creating confusions in the mind of IUML district president Panakkad Sadiqali Shihab Thangal.
“Holding the post of Vice President, it is meaningless to be there in the Panchayath only for the board meetings without even being part of any other programmes”, she said.
She has been Village Panchayath member for last eleven and half years and last time, she held the responsibility of Village Panchayath president for almost a year. That time too the case was not different as she resigned her post raising similar allegations of male supremacy and arrogance in the governing bodies. At present IUML has 14 members including eight women members, in the 19-member Panchayat body.
Making his statement on the issue, IUML district committee General Secretary P Abdul Hameed clarified that the resignation is not related to the party internal matters. He said that it is the dispute between Mariyumma and another woman member of the village Panchayath, now being portrayed as internal party conflicts.
“District President Panakkad Sadiqali Shihab Thangal was making sincere attempts to solve this issue through discussions, but in between she resigned” observed Mr Hameed.
Pookotoor Panchayath League committee secretary KP Unneethu Haji made it clear that at no instance Mariyumma was asked to take part only in the board meetings. “No such decisions have been taken and further actions will be taken only after the ward committee meeting”, he said.