Kanthapuram enjoys a multifaceted personality of a scholar, orator, writer, organizer, educationist and fore-fighter of social revivalism. He recognized and proved by his actions that knowledge can be turned to channalize for social empowerment and has a wider perspective.
He brought about a good social status and dignity for the religious scholars with his active interference in the society. He became a member of the Central Mushawara of Samastha Kerala Jam-iyyathul Ulema in 1974, followed by the office secretary, before becoming the joint secretary of the Samastha. He was a member of the committee, which was appointed to expand the organization in all India level in 1976. He held the designation of the general secretary of Samastha Kerala Sunni Yuvajana Sangham, (S.Y.S.) from 1975 to 1996, and he was the president of the organization during the tenure of 1996- 2004. Presently, Kanthapuram is the Chairman of the Supreme Council of S.Y.S. He also served as the member of Hajj committee of Kerala and Chairman to the Editorial board of the Arabic Text Books of Govt. Schools of Kerala.
He was elected as the General Secretary of Samastha Kerala Jam-iyyathul Ulema in 1989. In 1993, when the All India Jam-iyyathul Ulema was set up, Kanthapuram became the General Secretary and in the same year he was endorsed as the Consortium Qasi of Calicut and in 2003 as of the Wayanad district as well. Besides these, Kanthapuram is the treasurer of Samastha Kerala Sunni Education Board and General Secretary of the famous Markazu-ssaquafathi-ssuniyya or The Sunni Markaz.
The debates and dialogues of Kanthapuram is very famous especially against those sects of the Muslims who emerged against the puritan nature of Islam and the teachings of Qur-An. The debates of Kuttichira, Ayiroor, Kuttoor, Pattambi, Pulikkal, Valiyaparambu, Kottappuram…etc with Kanthapuram in lead, was surely a blow to these sectarians.
In the post independent India, where illiteracy and poverty were the ruling factors as the balance sheet of the colonial rule, Kanthapuram began his revivalism, keeping in mind the social and educational upliftment of the downtrodden class including that of the Muslims. He visualized and translated into action farsighted projects in order to change the social anarchy and educational backwardness of the Muslims, which were prevailing in the Muslim society after the 1921 Malabar Mutiny. Kanthapuram is the visionary, founder and founder General Secretary of Markazu-ssaquafathi-ssuniyya, which is a world famous educational consortium, including that of Orphanages, Vocational Training Centers, School of Islamic Shariah, School of Qur-An Learning, Engineering College, English Medium Educational Institutes, International Public Schools, Women's Educational Centers, Hospitals and Commercial Complexes. Apart from this, Kanthapuram serves as the chief patron and Chairman of about 300 Educational Institutions, which are spread all over India. The Islamic Educational Board, headed by Kanathapuram runs more than ten thousand Madrassas, which provides religious education up to the secondary level.
Focusing his attention on the suppressed and sidelined population, he felt that the need of the hour is to provide proper education to lift them up from all type of inhibition thus giving them all round social development. He pragmatically proved the concept of education by the very resolute principle of “Modern education in any branch, backed by moral traditions and religious values”.
This serves as a cornerstone to his contemplation of the educational system in the troubled modern world, which shapes the character of the individual in perfect balance applicable to any situation. Jamia Markaz and those institutions under its supervision are proving this very fact for the past 30 years.
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