Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama of EK Sunnis also known as Samastha, and EK Samastha, is a Sunni-Shafi'i Muslim scholarly body in Kerala. The body administers Shafi'ite mosques, institutes of higher religious learning (the equivalent of north Indian madrasas) and madrasas (institutions where children receive basic Islamic education) in India.
Kerala Muslims of the fundamentalist and puritanical views of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab (1703-1792), Salafism of Rashid Rida (1865-1935), Islamic modernism of Muhammad Abduh (1819-1905), pan-Islamism of Jamaluddin Afghani (1939-1897), and the Tahreek e-Mujahideen in North India. The new ideologists first came out through the Kerala Muslim Aikya Sangham (group for unity among Kerala Muslims), which was founded at Kodungallur of Cochin State in 1922 by leaders like K. M. Seethi Sahib, K. M. Maulavi, and EK Moulavi.
It tried to bring the scattered and unorganised reformist activists together. Later, they formed an Ulama organisation, Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama, at a two-day conference of Aikya Sangham held at Aluva in 1924.
Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama was formed on June 26, 1926 but it was officially registered on November 14, 1934, as the government approved its bylaw, which was agreed upon after deep and wide scholarly discussions held in various Mushawara meets and in consultation with law experts. It promulgated the propagation of true Islam, impart of religious education and activities against superstitions and un-Islamic traditions as its primary and supreme objectives. Its bylaw also included encouragement for secular education compatible with religious beliefs, and calls for religious tolerance, interfaith friendship, peaceful existence and national progress. The registration Number is S1.1934/35 at office of the Kozhikode district registrar
The Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama felt the need to organise to defend and protect KeralaâÂÂs Islamic tradition and to wage a revivalist movement against the new interpretations. Pangil Ahmed Kutty Musliyar, who had already started counter campaigns against the âÂÂWahhabi ideologyâÂÂ, along with some other scholars, met Varakkal Mullakoya Thangal, who was a Sufi Sheikh, to discuss creating an organisational movement to defend theirb version of Islam. Tangal suggested convening a meeting of scholars to discuss the suitable solution. In 1925, some major ulama and other society leaders gathered at Calicut Valiya Juma Masjid and formed an ulama organisation after prolonged and serious discussions.
KP Muhammad Meeran Musliyar and Parol Hussain Moulawi were named the President and Secretary of the organisation, respectively.
Samastha organised a host of public conferences at various places to spread their message. Facing an opposition of secularly educated people, journalists, advocates and neo-scholars who had been fruitfully utilising all means from public meetings to publications to propagate their reformist ideologies and to brand traditionalists as courting shirk, Samastha leaders were compelled to come out to defend themselves against the allegations and to explain its views. Systematically held public conferences and anniversaries increased Samasthas popularity, kept the majority of Mappila Muslims in their fold, and restricted the inroads of reformist ideologies. In the first 25 years, Samastha focused its agenda on conducting public conferences, dialogues and ideological conflicts. Between 1927 and 1944, it convened 15 annual conferences at various places attracting immense public attention. 70th year Anniversary E.K Aboobacker musliar addressing the crowd The 16th conference held at Karyavattam was important as since then Samastha started to keep records and registers of all activities, resolutions and decisions scientifically. After that, the frequency of the huge public conferences decreased mainly because the organisation had tightened its foundation and fortress by 1950s and it had formed many sub committees and subordinate organisations to deal with different issues. In next 40 years, it conducted next eight conferences.
The 24th and 25th conferences held at Calicut seashore in 1985 and 1996 were widely appreciated for the largest gatherings the town had ever witnessed, for the discipline and obedience the huge crowd displayed, for the resolutions, topics and issues the conference sessions discussed, and for the attention both drew from non-Muslim, political and government circles.
A forty-member 'mushawara' is the high command body of the Sunni council. As of 2020, the president was Sayed Jifri Muthukkoya Thangal.
The EK Samastha's Samastha Centenary Memmorial Book mentions several of its sub-organisations and gives details of them. They are as follows:
It is a sub-body of Samastha. It was founded on 24 March 1951. The board prepares curriculum, syllabus and textbooks in over 11,000 madrasas.
It is an organisation of madrasa inspectors. Its state-level body was formed in 1959.
It is an organization to coordinate and empower mallahu bodies. First body of SMF was formed in 1976 in the northern part of Tirur Taluk, then in 1977 in Malappuram district. In 1987 the state-level body was formed.
It is a student-youth organisation of Samastha. It was founded on 19 February 1989.
It a youth and mass organisation of EK Samastha. It was regrouped due to a reason linked to the 1989 dispute between AP Sunnis and EK Sunnis. AP Sunnis had taken over the SYS founded in 1954.
It was founded on 26 December 1993. It functions under the aegis of SKJMCC, inside and outside of Kerala, with 19 district committees, 560 range committees and ten thousand madrasasa unit committees, with around 12 lakh members.
It is an organisation of employees. It was founded in 2001.
It is an organisation of madrasa office bearers. It began its works since 2009 under SKIVB.
It is an association for madrasa teachers. Its first district level working body was formed in 2013 and the state level body in 2015
It first district level working committee came in to being in June 2013 and the state level committee after EK Samastha central mushavara's permission in 2015.
It was founded in 2013 under SKIVB. EK Samastha's Samastha Centenary Memmorial Book, published on 4 February 2025, says as of now Samastha has filed several appeals before the Supreme Count of India for around 22 matters
It is a body of Khatibs. It was founded on 15 April 2017.
It was founded in 2019. EK Samastha's Samastha Centenary Memmorial Book, published on 4 February 2025, referring to it as the "newest child" of Samastha, continues that Samastha recognised it as the 14th feeder organisation.
The 100th Anniversary of Samastha Kerala refers to the events organized in 2024 to commemorate the centennial of the Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama, The two-year-long celebrations were inaugurated on 28 January 2024 in Bangalore, Karnataka, India and will continue till 8 February 2026. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah inaugurated the Samastha's 100th anniversary declaration conference at Bengaluru Palace grounds 28 January 2024.
Celebrations of the 100th anniversary of Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama, which will be held from February 6 to 8, 2026, have begun in Bengaluru. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah inaugurated the 100th anniversary function at Bengaluru Palace grounds on 28 January 2024.
Six action plans were announced at the inaugural meeting. Samasta President Muhammad Jifri Muthukkoya Thangal announced the plans. They announced the six projects decided in the Samasta Kendra Mushavara meeting.