The revelation came after a petition filed by Swapna Suresh, the accused in the Kerala Gold Smuggling case, before the Kerala High Court.
Responding to queries, KT Jaleel clarified that he wrote to the UAE consulate to urge it to take necessary action against Madhyamam, and not for a ban. (Facebook/drkt.jaleel)
KT Jaleel, a former minister of education as well as the minister for minority welfare in Kerala, is under fire from several quarters for urging foreign action on the overseas edition of a state-based newspaper.
It is alleged that he wrote to the UAE consulate on 6 May, 2020, during his tenure as a minister of the state, requesting action against the newspaper Madhyamam for its coverage of Covid-19 deaths in the Gulf country.
Jaleel’s action against the newspaper has irked the CPI(M) leadership in the state.
CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan was forced to slam the former minister: He said banning newspapers was not a policy followed by his party.
A copy of the letter sent by Jaleel through WhatsApp to Swapna Suresh was submitted by her in a petition in the Kerala Gold Smuggling Case.
The letter began with the salutation “Dear Brother, Assalamu Alaikum”, and went on to say that the reports and publications of the Gulf editions of Madhyamam were going against the facts and interests of the countries there, and that this be seriously looked at and necessary action be taken.
Otherwise, it could lead to the publication of more such reports in the future, which would be “defaming” for the Gulf countries and their residents, said Jaleel in the letter.
Responding to queries, Jaleel clarified that he wrote to the UAE consulate to urge it to take necessary action against the newspaper, and not for a ban.
The former minister referred to himself as Abdul Jaleel in the letter, asserting that it was his given name and not an official name.
Jaleel resigned from the post of minister in April last year following allegations of nepotism in appointments made to the Kerala State Minorities Finance Development Corporation.
He was accused of illegally appointing his second cousin the general manager of the corporation.
Madhyamam is one of the more prominent Malayalam language newspapers in Kerala as well as the Middle East.
The newspaper was founded by Ideal Publications, a trust run by the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind.
The newspaper has nine editions in India: seven in Kerala and one each in Mangaluru and Bengaluru.
The Gulf Madhyamam is their Middle East version, and has nine editions in the region.
The newspaper has bagged several awards for its journalism, including the Ramnath Goenka Journalism Award, Statesman Award for Rural Reporting, PUCL Journalism Award for Human Rights, Environment and Social Responsibility (ESR) World Journalism Prize, and the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) Developing Asia Journalism Award.
Madhyamam Editor VM Ibraheem told South First that the newspaper published a story about Covid-19 deaths in a particular light with the images of all the deaths of Keralites in the UAE. The intention was to highlight the gravity of the situation, he said.
“We published the story at a juncture when Kerala was performing better in its Covid-19 management. The situation in the UAE was severe, and as a newspaper, we echoed the helplessness of the people there to inform the state government so that action could be taken by the administration to transport people in the UAE back to Kerala by pressuring the Union government,” he explained.
Ibraheem says Madhyamam stands by its story. He also denied allegations that the story contained factual errors.
He confirmed that there were inquiries from the media council and other regulatory bodies regarding the story, and that no action was taken against the newspaper.
He said the complaint did not have any impact on the newspaper’s coverage or circulation.
Ibraheem added that it was the former minister who now needs to clarify what his intention was when he wrote the letter.
Media One, a TV news channel from the same media house, was barred by the Union government for its coverage of the 2019 riots in New Delhi.
Initially, the Kerala High court and later the Supreme Court had to intervene for the channel to resume its broadcasting.
Suresh on Friday accused Jaleel of indulging in “anti-national activities” and violating protocols when he was a minister.
She told reporters: “He is least bothered about the number of deaths due to the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Suresh added: “If Jaleel can write a letter against a newspaper for publishing about the deaths in the UAE, he can make many such complaints against one Swapna Suresh to keep her quiet.”
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and National Investigative Agency (NIA) are already investigating Jaleel, Suresh and others accused over their alleged involvement in the Kerala gold smuggling case.
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