Debate over Malappuram district bifurcation sparks community tensions
The demand by Islamic outfits for the bifurcation of Malappuram into two districts has upset and shocked the Hindus in the district. Malappuram, popularly known as the Pakistan of Kerala, is a Muslim-majority district and home to the 1921 Mappila Rebellion, a Hindu genocide.
The recently held election to Local Self Government Institutions saw the Muslim League, an outfit working exclusively for the interests of Muslims, sweeping the district grama panchayat, block and grama panchayats, and municipalities. Enthused and encouraged by the poll results, the Islamic outfits have upped the ante and demanded the bifurcation of the district into two.
“Their claim that Malappuram has a population of five million is yet to be ratified by the government. Kerala’s total population is 3.5 crore (2011 census). If the claim made by the Muslim outfit is right, then the remaining population of three crore is distributed in the 13 districts of the state, and this makes their claim far from reality,” said Bharat K Menon, general secretary, National Hindu League.
It may be noted that Malappuram district itself was formed in 1969 by the then CPI(M)-led government as a quid pro quo for the support given by the Muslim League for the EMS Namboodirippadu ministry. According to political chroniclers of Kerala, Malappuram district was a gift by the CPI(M) to the Muslims as part of minority appeasement.
Over the years, thousands of Hindu households have left the district because of Love Jihad and threats issued by the extremist outfits. “We have been asked to move out or get converted to Islam. If we report this to the police, that is the end of our lives,” said a prominent Hindu face in Tirur, a Malappuram suburb.
Interestingly, Vellappally Natesan, general secretary of Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP Yogam), has been saying regularly that Hindu organizations are discriminated against by the state government while allocating licenses for schools and colleges in the district. A perusal of the details of educational institutions substantiates the complaint made by the leader of the powerful Eezhava community.
According to Menon, the formation of a new district as per the demand of Islamic outfits would add to the financial woes of the state. “Kerala has fallen into a debt trap, and the bifurcation of the district would add to the cost of governance by thousands of crores,” said the NHL general secretary.
The NHL warned all political parties in the state against approaching the electorate with promises of districts and other benefits in lieu of their voting for these parties. “If these political outfits make electoral promises not in tune with ground realities, we will approach the courts to challenge the legality and constitutionality of these offers,” he said.
If the district of Malappuram is feeling suffocated by the spurt in population, the government could transfer the local bodies in the border to neighboring districts of Kozhikode, Palakkad, Wayanad, and Thrissur, said the NHL office bearers. “This will lighten the financial burden on the government in setting up new infrastructure and recruiting more staff to various offices in the newly formed district,” said the NHL general secretary.
Centre for Policy Studies, a think tank based in Chennai, has found out from its research that the increase in the Muslim population in Malappuram district was disproportionate compared to the other 13 districts in the state. The number of children per hundred of population in Malappuram is the highest in Kerala, according to the 2011 census. “Muslims registered 15.41 children per hundred while Hindus with 10.49 and Christians with 10.08 children finished second and third respectively,” said Dr. J K Bajaj, lead scientist, CPS.
The CPS research further found that Muslims topped the table in Kasaragod district with 15.75 children per hundred of the population, while Hindus finished third with 9.55 behind the Christians, who registered 9.84 children per hundred of the population.
Since no census was held in 2021 due to the Covid pandemic, official data about the figures of children per hundred of the population is not known. But the situation would have deteriorated further as the Muslims and Christians do not accept population control measures. Each Muslim couple in the State have at least four children. Since Muslim menfolk are allowed to have four wives at a time, the population is always on the increase.
Share of Muslims in the child (0-6yr) population of Kerala and their share in the live births in the state are much higher than their share in the population and have been rising rapidly. Muslims have a share of 41.45 percent in the live births in 2015 compared to 36.32 percent in 2008. And they have a share of 36.74 percent in the 0-6 population of the state in 2011, compared to 31.08 percent in 2001. Their share in the total population as counted inthe Census 2011 is only 26.56 percent.
The data strongly suggests that the imbalance in the growth of Muslims and others in the state is likely to keep rising sharply rather than subsiding in the foreseeable future.
Kottayam-based Baselios Marthoma Mathews III, head of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, popularly known as Comrade Mathews, has said that Hindus are foreigners and came to India from European countries after 52 CE. This has shocked the Sanatanis. According to Mathews, Christians reached the sub-continent much earlier, and hence the Hindus cannot claim the status of the original residents of India.
The statement of Mathews has been made in the backdrop of a media blitzkrieg that Christians are under attack in India, and various “militant” Hindu organizations were behind the attacks. The heads of various Christian denominations want unfettered freedom to forcibly convert Hindus to Christianity as part of their mission to annihilate Sanatana Dharma. The recent arrest of a team of pastors belonging to the Church of South India at Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra was because of the blatant violation of the Freedom of Religion Act legislated by the Government of Maharashtra.
The demand by Muslims for the bifurcation of Malappuram district is a prelude to their idea of a separate Malabar state. While the Muslims demand new districts and the formation of a new state, the Christians want unfettered freedom to proselytize the Hindus, whom the evangelists describe as the “unreached” people.
Note:
1. Text in Blue points to additional data on the topic.
2. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.
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