Secular forces struggle to cope with communal polarisation after political killings in Kerala
KOZHIKODE: Opposition Leader VD Satheesan was on target when he said the gruesome murders in Alappuzha were not political, but the handiwork of two communal forces. The murder and retaliation that occurred within the interval of a few hours point to the growing influence of religious fundamentalist forces desperately seeking to hold centre stage in Kerala.
Electoral performances of these forces is not a yardstick to gauge the influence they command in society. The votes the SDPI got in the last assembly elections are negligible, and the BJP had to surrender the lone seat it had in the house. But the Popular Front of India (PFI), SDPI's parent organisation, is making significant inroads among the Muslim community.
The peculiarities of national politics, and the weakening hold of secular parties, make the PFI acceptable to many. The outfit is positioning itself as the protector of the minorities against the 'mounting fascist aggression'.
PFI's rhetoric laced with Islamic terminology is gaining more respectability even among the forces that were stonewalling the outfit’s entry into the community. The IUML is finding it difficult to cope with the situation where the hawks are ruling the roost. The belligerent posture the party took on some issues recently is viewed by many as a desperate attempt to keep afloat in the changed scenario.
On the other hand, the Sangh Parivar is trying to widen its support base by whipping up the sentiment that the LDF government is hand-in-glove with 'Islamic extremists'. BJP state president K Surendran has alleged that the police in Kerala are helping extremist forces. The Sangh Parivar is happy that its campaigns, like the ones on 'halal food' and 'narcotic jihad', have been adopted by some sections among the Christian community too.
BJP leader Subramaniam Swamy even went to the extent of seeking the Centre's intervention to dismiss the LDF government, which has failed to "maintain law and order". He also demanded a ban on the PFI. In the meantime, the secular parties in the state are caught in a difficult situation. The space for their intervention is shrinking in the fight for dominance by the communal forces.
The CPM is getting brickbats from both sides. While forces like the PFI blame the CPM for buckling under Sangh Parivar pressure, the party also faces the charge of promoting Islamic extremism. The party held a 'Secular Get-together' in some places "against the forces that divide society".