Author: Dr C.I. Issac
Publication: Organiser
Date: September 19, 2004
URL: http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=41&page=38
Introduction: Hindus of Kerala
That the Hindus of Kerala are getting
to be a minority community in their native land is not a secret any more.
When India became a republic, the Hindus of this land had a population
share of 61.5 per cent. Today it has progressively and gradually declined
to reach the level of 55 per cent. This numerical decline in the Hindu
community cannot be treated as an inadvertent phenomenon.
This pathetic situation is the handiwork
and conscious effort of anti-national forces which operated here for the
last several years. Here I am not going to use this space for a detailed
analysis of this U-turn in the demographic structure of Kerala. But at
the same time in my mind certain doubts are arising. Recent developments
prove that this numerical decline of Hindus is resulting in the defeat
of the community as a whole from the social, economic, cultural, political,
etc. scenarios of the land. Whether this setback is being seen or not,
remains a question to be answered.
The Hindus as a community are technically
maintaining numerical majority in the demographic charts of the Census
Department of the land. In fact, this numerical upper hand is not reflected
in its social standards. It is a reality rather than a fiction. The main
reason for this setback is its inherent nature of splitting up into jatis
and upajatis (castes and sub-castes). The chief constituent jatis of the
Hindu social fabric of Kerala mainly constitute approximately 11 per cent
of SC/ST castes, 20 per cent of Nairs and 24 per cent of Ezhavas. Even
though these jatis are basically Hindus, they are lacking the sense of
Hindu feeling. The particular politico-economic structure that prevails
over this land forbids development of such a Hindu mindset amongst them.
Before analysing the marginalisation of Hindus from the various spheres
of political economy of the land, we must consider all the relative questions
regarding the decline in the Hindu population.
Those who come under the purview
of SC/ST category are destined to be at the bottom of the jati hierarchy
due to historical reasons and who now-adays are slowly but surely being
eliminated from the political, cultural and socio- economic scenario of
life in Kerala. The communist movement which once enticed them, was able
to wipe out their innate Hindu feeling and transplanted in its place a
class feeling. No doubt, to a certain extent, the communists were successful
at it. At the same time, for decades they were able to attach these poor
people as serfs and vote-banks to the party. This section paid a good price
to retain the communist party in the towers of political power for the
last four to five decades in the state. But the party leadership and its
higher political offices still remain as 'sour grapes' to these poor people
which is a contradiction. By the way, the communist parties of Kerala succeeded
in isolating them from the age-old social relations of the land but these
subalterns had nothing to do with the present liberalised market and economic
situation. In the economic scenario of Kerala, the Hindu social group is
nothing but a big zero.
The communist parties that monopolised
the leadership of the subaltern Hindu sections deliberately did not attempt
to make these people competent to face the challenges of the new economic
order of the twenty-first century. Moreover, the party successfully alienated
these people from their noble traditions also. In the history of Malayalam
literature, long-standing contributions were made by the subalterns. But
nowadays the creative genius of this section is alienated from the mainstream
literary transaction through legitimisa-tion of subaltern literature which
was godfathered by the communist movement all over. Here, in the case of
Hindu Kerala, it will produce a suicidal impact on the Hindu society in
general and on the subalterns in particular, in the long run.
There are about 11 per cent Hindus
belonging to the SC/ST category. The story of the 44 per cent Hindus, inclusive
of Nairs and Ezhavas, is not much better than that of the SC/ST. Both these
Hindu jatis still have sufficient potential to create an atmosphere of
Hindu unity. Unfortunately, both the jatis are too polarised. It cannot
be denied that behind their polarisation there are political reasons. I
am not ignoring the latest developments amongst the Nair and Ezhava leadership
for a cordial co-existence. The decision of inviting Nair leadership to
the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Sri Narayana Guru by Ezhava
leadership is a salutary step towards Hindu unity in Kerala. Kerala is
known for its coalition experiments. In a state where the minority communities
through their communal political parties control coalition politics, these
polarised Hindu jatis are the major loser. In short, as compared to Christian
and Muslim communities, the divided Hindu jatis are no longer a pressure
group in any ruling coalition. In General Elections the Hindu jatis wooed
both of them, without getting assurance of any favours from either.
Behind the Nair-Ezhava polarisation,
a minority political conspiracy is on. It becomes clear when we analyse
the events that have taken place in this state since the days of the nivarthana
(abstention) agitation of 1932 to the fourteenth Lok Sabha election of
2004. At the same time, the history of past assaults on the Hindu community
like burning the temple of Sabari Giri, liberation struggle of 1958 (against
the first elected communist ministry), construction of Church by destroying
a Siva temple near the birthplace of Jagat Guru Sankaracharya, occupation
of Kottiyoor temple land, belittling of Hindus and obstruction to the Tali
temple renovation, construction of Church in Sabri Giri temple's holy garden,
etc. point to the absence of Hindu unity and a sense of insecurity troubling
the various jatis through decades.
Without writing about the economic
scenario of Kerala´s Hindu social formations, our attempt is to see
the challenges mounted by the demographic imbalances. The NRK (non-resident
Keralite) remittances as well as income from commercial crops are the main
source of income for the state. Who controls this income? The number of
NRKs during the period 1998-2002 were 3,65,293, of which, 82.5 per cent
are in the Gulf countries. Out of these, 49.5 per cent were Muslims and
31.5 per cent Christians. The Hindu share in this sector is only 19 per
cent only (see Economic Times, May 19, 2003). Nearly 60.5 per cent of the
total NRK remittance was the contribution of the minority communities (see
K.C. Zachariah´s report in The New Indian Express, Kochi, July 22,
2003). A prominent Malayalam weekly in its editorial clearly mentions in
strong terms the inherent danger in this growing imbalance of foreign remittance
(see Malayalam Varika, editorial, Vol. VII, No. 12, July 25, 2003). The
only one aspect, i.e. the imbalance in the foreign remittance, is sufficient
to prove the fall in the Hindu community in the near future.
The accumulated money amongst the
minorities is mostly invested in land. This ultimately reduces the Hindu
share on landholding considerably. "While examining the records of the
registration (land) department, it is evident that in several districts
70 per cent of the lands were purchased by the above-said communities,"
(see Malayalam Varika, op cit.). In the landholding pattern too, the numerically
ever-shrinking, unorganised Hindu community is being marginalised. Through
pressure tactics exerted by the minorities, they are being compelled/forced
to discard their landholdings at a throwaway price. "In certain specific
districts the purchase of land is the exclusive right of a particular community.
The intermediary in this deal is also their religious institution". Annihilation
of Hindu land ownership began in the days of land reforms (1977). Plantations
(rubber) were exempted from the purview of land ceiling because the majority
plantations were owned by the minorities. At the same time coconut and
paddy lands were not protected under the plantation clause because the
majority owners of this category were Hindus. At present the situation
is alarming. All this happened when other than the lack of the sense of
Hindu feeling and numerically ever- shrinking position, the rate of the
last decade's population growth in the state was 9.42%. The Hindu majority
in Pathanamthitta district has shown the lowest rate of growth, i.e. 3.72
per cent. On the other hand, the Muslim- dominated Malappuram district
has shown 17.22 per cent growth in the said period which is the highest
in the state (see Kesari Annual, 2004, pp 98-101).
If it is the state of the art of
economic condition of the Hindus, it is too pathetic and disastrous considering
the challenges they are facing in the cultural scenario of Kerala. The
cultural domain of Kerala is fast getting Christianised as well as Islamised.
Most of the visual and print media of the state is either directly under
the ownership/control of minority communities or under their influence.
This state of affairs is favourable to create an atmosphere in favour of
the minorities in the cultural scenario. As a result, in the State School
Youth Festival, certain items of exclusive minority art with little cultural
value were included and non-Muslim students were prohibited from participating
in the State Arabic Youth Festival. These are the best examples of the
threat that the Hindus are facing.
Through generations, Hindus have
been worshipping the cow. The only state in India which legitimises cow
slaughter is Kerala. According to official data available with the government,
5,00,000 cows were slaughtered in the state during 2002 and 2,49,000 tonnes
of beef was sold (see The New Indian Express, Kochi, August 13, 2003).
In reality the real statistics of cow slaughter are far from the official
accounts. It is true that a conspiracy is going on to force the younger
generation of Hindus to become beef-eaters. In the name of friendship,
the minorities are compelling Hindu boys to share beef preparations with
them. All these are indications of Hindu alienation and distancing from
its cultural domain.
(To be concluded)
(The author is a professor of history
at Kottayam.)
