Leading Barelvi Cleric From India's Kerala State: 'Gender Equality Is... Against Islam'; 'Women... Are Fit Only To Deliver Children'

by Guest Sat Jan 23, 2016 5:35 pm

Kanthapuram AP Aboobacker Musliar, an internationally known Sunni Islamic scholar based in the southern Indian state of Kerala, has been in the headlines recently for his misogynistic statements.

Aboobacker Musliar is the chief of the All India Sunni Jamiyyathul Ulama, a religious organization belonging to the Barelvi school of Sunni Islam. Early this year, Aboobacker Musliar visited New Zealand, where he is establishing a mosque to further his religious influence.

On January 2, he posted a message on his certified Facebook page: "The western Hamilton city of New Zealand, where more than two hundred families of Muslims live without a single Masjid [mosque] in the province except the one in the East. Some of our brothers have bought land in the West and want to build a masjid which will accommodate three hundred worshipers and to be a beacon of Islam in the area. If anyone wish to built [sic] or contribute in this great endeavour, please contact us."[1] On January 4, he posted: "Touched down Wellington International Airport, New Zealand. Thank you for the grand reception. Many brothers turned out to the Kiwi capital."[2]

But it is Kerala where Aboobacker Musliar's influence among Muslims is widespread. The southern Indian state has recently attracted attention for growing Wahhabism and other forms of Sunni religious orthodoxies. From this state, a journalist went to Syria to join the Islamic State (ISIS), and some UAE-based Keralite Muslim youths were deported back to Kerala because of their pro-ISIS connections.

http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/8949.htm