No minor predicament

Even a small shift in minority votes can have a major effect on poll results

- CITHARA PAUL

The term ‘minority's been associated with many things—from marginalization and alienation to ghettoization and deprivation. Not in Kerala, though. It is perhaps the only state in India where minority communities are on an equal, if not better, footing with the majority community—both financially and politically.

A bit of history first. Unlike in many parts of India, the origin of minority communities in Kerala is not linked to invaders. Both Islam and Christianity reached the state soon after they took birth. Arab traders brought Islam as early as the seventh century, while Christians in the state trace their roots to the storied visit of the apostle St Thomas in AD 52, much before Christianity reached Europe. Both the communities prospered in the largely peaceful and pluralistic milieu of the state’s prominent trading hubs.

“Christianity and Islam spread in Kerala in a peaceful and gradual manner; there has rarely been any clash with existing Hindu practices,”said writer and political observer M.N. Karassery. “Also, both the communities adapted to existing sociocultural practices and merged with the mainstream.”

According to the 2011 census, Muslims and Christians make up 26.56 per cent and 18.38 per cent of the state’s population, respectively. The Muslim population increased 12.23 per cent between 2001 and 2011, while Hindus and Christians grew by 2.23 per cent and 1.38 per cent, respectively.