Kerala: Writer atones' for murder of Junaid

Thiruvananthapuram: Malayalam author K.P. Ramanunni donated his Kendra Sahitya Akademi prize money to the mother of Hafiz Junaid Khan, the teenage boy who was killed on a train in Haryana for allegedly carrying beef. Mr Ramanunni who received the award in New Delhi handed over the money to Junaid’s mother on Monday. Of the prize money of Rs one lakh, he kept a token amount of Rs three and donated the rest to the family of the deceased.

Mr Ramanunni, a known critic of religious extremism, won the award for the book “Daivathinte Pustakam” with  the theme about Hindu- Muslim religious harmony. “Junaid, a 15-year-old was killed by Hindu communal forces for being a Muslim. My act was an act of penance for that wicked sin. Penance is an act rooted in true Hindu tradition. Upholding the love for other religions is something that is cherished by Hinduism. “Daivathinte Pusthakam” is a book in which the prophet, Muhammad Nabi, called Krishnan ‘Ikka’ meaning elder brother and Krishnan affectionately called the Prophet ‘Mushy’ meaning precious dear,” Ramanunni said.

“I am happy as the novel got recognised during testing times, when the pluralistic traditions of our country are being questioned. The novel was written in the same secularist tradition like my earlier works, “Sufi Paranja Katha” and “Jeevithainte Pusthakam”. The tradition of secularism becomes a major theme of my novels as I was brought up in this cultural context,” said Mr Ramannunni.

On June 22, 2017, Junaid Khan, the fifth of Saira and Jalaluddin’s seven children, left home in Khandawali village of Haryana’s Ballabhgarh district with elder brother Hashim, 19, and friends Moin and Mohsin on a Mathura-bound train. Junaid was stabbed to death by a group of men after an argument over seats turned ugly. The men allegedly mocked the boys, for their beards and accused them of being beef eaters. Junaid was later thrown out of the train at Asaoti station. The boy bled to death on his brother Hashim’s lap.