Kerala govt. firm on Zumba in schools, seeks an end to controversy
The Kerala government dug in its heels on Sunday regarding its decision to introduce Zumba sessions in government schools, despite criticism from certain Muslim social organisations and clerics who argued that the aerobic fitness dance format was patently against Islamic precepts.
However, the administration also cautioned society against allowing the controversy to escalate into an alienating culture war. Several Muslim organisations sought to moderate the controversy in larger civic interest.
For one, the Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama (EK faction) leader Nasar Faisi Kudathai welcomed Mr. Sivankutty's statement. Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen (KNM) State president T.P. Abdulla Koya Madani urged clerics to refrain from making divisive statements.
Meanwhile, General Education Minister V. Sivankutty messaged the government resolve to introduce Zumba in schools. He stood by in solidarity as Zumba fans turned out in strength in front of the Secretariat to showcase the popular exercise format. Instructors guided the adults and children, including families, as they gyrated and gambolled to upbeat music.
Against divisiveness
He urged society to put an end to the divisive controversy. He said the extreme right fringe, irrespective of their religious hues, sought to inject communalism and divisiveness into the younger generation by attempting to arbitrate on uniform codes, holidays, class hours, and examination timings.
'Such schismatic ruses will not pass muster in secular and progressive Kerala. Students are free to choose not to attend Zumba classes. Attendance is not linked to marks or evaluation of academic performance,' he said.
How the dispute began
The dispute erupted after the Wisdom Islamic Organisation and the Sunni Yuvajana Sangham (SYS), including some ultra-conservative Islamist clerics, opposed the government's move.
Some clerics equated Zumba to 'lewd and skimpily clad DJ party dancing' on social media. They ruled that the exercise format violated the lifestyle regulations codified in Islamic law and undermined family and religious values.
The Muslim Students Federation (MSF) requested that the government provide evidence that Zumba could prevent drug and alcohol abuse before making the fitness dance form mandatory in schools.
However, the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP), a prominent social organisation for Hindu backwards classes, backed the government's move. SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan told reporters in Alappuzha: 'Those opposing Zumba should step back. If someone says there is an attempt to turn Kerala into a religious State, they would not be entirely wrong.'
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) urged the government not to bow to the whims and fancies of Islamist groups as part of the Left Democratic Front's (LDF) 'appeasement politics'.
However, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader V. Muraleedharan questioned the wisdom of introducing an exercise format 'alien to India and its culture' into the State school curriculum.
The Youth Congress, Students' Federation of India (SFI), and Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) denounced the move to impose religious considerations on sports and art forms.
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