Kollam: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday escalated his criticism of IUML supremo Panakkad Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal, accusing him of being responsible for the League's current position regarding the Jamaat-e-Islami and the SDPI. The SDPI is the political offshoot of the banned Islamist group Popular Front of India (PFI).

On Sunday, Vijayan had remarked that Thangal was acting like a worker of Jamaat-e-Islami. Thangal is also the spiritual leader of a significant section of Sunni Muslims in Kerala. During his speech at a party event in Kollam on Tuesday, the chief minister stated that his previous criticism of Thangal had caused an uproar among IUML workers, who had responded with "language akin to that of communal extremists."

"Do not come here with that kind of language. We (CPM) are against all forms of communalism," Vijayan emphasised. He clarified that his criticism was directed solely at Thangal, the president of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), and that he had never made similar comments about the other Thangals of Panakkad. "There have been many Panakkad Thangals. I have never said anything about them. What I said earlier was about IUML president Thangal," he explained.

Vijayan also questioned whether, before Thangal became the head of IUML, the party, a key ally of the Congress, had any ties with the Jamaat-e-Islami. "Did it have the present stance it holds regarding the Jamaat and SDPI? Is he (Thangal) not responsible for it?" the CM asked.

The Chief Minister's earlier remarks had prompted the Congress-led UDF to accuse him of attempting to stir up majority communalism in the state. The IUML, the second-largest coalition partner in the UDF, had also strongly criticised Vijayan, publishing a sharp editorial in the party’s mouthpiece Chandrika, PTI reported.

On Tuesday, Youth Congress state president Rahul Mamkootathil, who is also the UDF candidate for the Palakkad bypoll, claimed that Vijayan's comments would be a significant issue in the election. He argued that the remarks carried communal undertones and reflected Vijayan's Sangh Parivar mindset.