KOCHI: A reputed Islamic seminary in Tamil Nadu is in the eye of a storm over its reported move to deviate from the traditional ideology, which Islamic scholars fear would lead to extremist line of thought spreading its tentacles. The scholars have expressed concern over the proposal of the secretary of Al-Baqiyathus Salihath, the 100- year-old Islamic seminary located in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, to change the syllabus.The Bakavi Association, an organisation of Islamic scholars who have graduated from this institution, says that the revised curriculum would instil among the students intolerance towards other religions, which will have disastrous impact in the future.The scholars allege that new generation movements like Thableeg Jama’at are behind this move.To discuss steps to be taken for preventing the move, Bakavis across the country will meet at Vellore on Monday.“The revised curriculum cannot be accepted. Those who graduate from this institution are supposed to lead the community. If budding scholars are brainwashed and extreme ideology is instilled in them, it will have a disastrous impact on the community as well as the country,’” said Kanthapuram A P Aboobacker Museliyar, a member of the Bakavi Association, who is also an alumnus of the seminary.Scholars believe that deviating from the ideology followed for more than 100 years would prove to be detrimental to the society.“The new curriculum is entirely against the traditional Sunni ideology. It suggests prohibition of Milad and Purdha recital. It is also learnt that the proposed curriculum has some elements which teach intolerance to followers of other religions,” Museliyar told Express.Museliyar, who is also general secretary of the All India Sunni Jam-Iyyathul Ulema general, alleged that the secretary of madrasa Al-Baqiyathus Salihath was behind the move to revise the curriculum. “The secretary is a person who supports Thableeg movement. The Bakavis Association will never allow the move to introduce the new curriculum. Further decisions will be taken at the conference to be held on Monday,” he said.Abdul Azeez Bakavi, the secretary of the Bakavi association, said that the institution that has been propagating Sunni Islamic ideology for the last 100 years would become a hub of ‘bad ideas’ if curriculum change was allowed.“The secretary of this seminary has been introducing changes over the past few years. Following this, there has been a considerable fall in the number of students enrolling there. There used to be 450 students in a year, now it has come down to 200. This means the community itself is against the deviation in curriculum. If this continues, the institution will lose its relevance,” Bakavi said.
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