Socio-cultural Processes and Livelihood Patterns at Tirurangadi - CDS

second the emergence of he Muslim league which developed as the single most powerful
force of the area. However, during the years following the rebellion, the situation was
amorphous. The leadership of ‘traditional’ intellectuals, which seemed to be reviving
under Ali Musaliar, disappeared. The traditional Ulema were never in full support of the
rebellion and afterwards seemed to withdraw to fulfill their religious functions. A new
‘modernist’ leadership was emerging drawn from the middle classes that received
modern education and they formed the Muslim Aikya Sangham. We have seen the slow
process of the development of ‘modernity’ in the region, and it is not surprising that the
Aikya sangham did not receive immediate support in the area. It is possible that only a
small minority even knew about the Aikyasamgham. The Ulema who survived the
rebellion, either fled to other places, or lived a relatively obscure life. The single
influential Muslim leader in the area, was apparently Mohammed Abdurahiman, a
Congressman , who later sided with the Congress socialist party and became the president
of the KPCC. Most of the Congress loyalists of the older generation in the area fondly
remember Abdurrahman, and how meetings addressed by him attracted very large
audiences from all parts of the region. The older Congressmen from Peruvallur,
koduvayur, Olakara, Munniyur and Parappanangadi attribute their links with the
Congress to Abdurrahman. However, Abdurrahman was not popular with the elite groups
among Islam, a fact demonstrated by his defeat in the hands of Sattar Sait in the 1937
elections to the Madras Legislative Assembly.
The reasons for the unpopularity seem to have been twofold. First was that Abdurrahman
was opposing the capitalist and commercial tendencies among the Muslims by using the
scriptural testimony of Islam itself. This is shown in the controversy between
Abdurahiman and K.M. Moulavi on the question of the foundation of an ‘Islamic bank’ at
mathilakam under the initiative of K.M.Moulavi. Abdurrahman criticized the move by
pointing out that starting a bank involves transactions of interest payments, which is