Poetess and short story writer Kamala Surayya nee Madhavikutty, among the first Indian writers in English, who passed away at 1.55 am Sunday in a Pune hospital, is to be buried as per Muslim religious rites, at the Palayam Juma Masjid premises in Thiruvananthapuram.

Madhavikutty, 75, was admitted at Jehangir Hospital here with acute pneumonia and breathing problems on April 18 and had been on a ventilator ever since. She is survived by three sons.

Her conversion to Islam in December 1999 that had created a storm in Kerala will come under public gaze for the last time on Tuesday. And the ripples set off by the conversion were visible even on Sunday as her death certificate was made in the name of Kamala Madhava Das and the accompanying smasan parvana was filled with the venue for funeral at Vaikunth (city crematorium) and the date for the funeral as 31/05/09. Clearly, the decision taken in the morning was changed later in the day.

“My mother was a Muslim for many years and died a Muslim. She had converted to Islam happily and of her free will. It doesn’t matter what I or my brothers want. It was her wish (to convert to Islam) and we will respect it and abide by it. There is no way a posthumous reconversion can be held. So her funeral will have to be as per Islamic norms. It was also her wish that she be returned to Kerala,” Monu Nalapat, Madhavikutty’s eldest son, said.

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