Kerala local body polls: UDF not to have open ties with Welfare Party

KOZHIKODE/MALAPPURAM: Apparently fearing a backlash from Hindu and Christian voters, the UDF has decided not to go for an open state-level alliance with the Welfare Party of India, the political wing of Jamaat e Islami in the local body elections. However, there are indications that the front will have local-level understanding with the WPI. DCC president K Praveen Kumar said that the UDF has decided that seat sharing will be done only among the constituents of the front. Asked whether the IUML was taken into confidence while taking the decision, he said it was the opinion of all the constituents of the UDF. To a question, he said Congress in Kozhikode is not a separate entity and hence the decision is the same for the party in all parts of the state. Meanwhile, IUML state general secretary P M A Salam told TNIE that the UDF has directed its local leadership to form ties with the WPI wherever it benefits the front. The UDF has no official alliance with the WPI at the state level. However, the situation is different in local body elections, where we need the support of smaller parties to ensure the fronts victory. Both the IUML and the UDF have instructed local leaders to cooperate with the Welfare Party wherever necessary. That is what is being reflected in Malappuram. The WPI is not supporting the League specifically; their support is for the UDF as a whole, he said. UDF has been gearing up for an alliance with the WPI. Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan had given a clean chit to the party, saying there is a shift in the Jamaat ideology. Muslim Youth League president Panakkad Syed Munavvar Ali Shihab Thangal also echoed similar sentiments.