As a Malayali, I felt proud of the Malayalam media - to which I, too, belong - despite my differences over many aspects of how it conducts itself. Most of the Indian media was seen mired in unabashed glorification of the recent consecration of Ayodhya's new Sri Ram temple, an event that posed serious challenges to the idea of a secular and democratic India. But Kerala's media, without keeping away from the euphoria, didn't fail to adhere to the fundamental principle of good journalism- airing multiple voices on the topic, including the very critical ones. This practice of pluralism would have been routine in any democracy, but not so in present-day India, where every institution is capitulated to the powers to be.
The consecration provided a moment of embarrassment, too, to me as a Malayali. It reminded me of the highly controversial role of the Malayali ICS officer, Kadamkalathil Karunakaran Nair(1907-77), in triggering the dramatic events that culminated in the consecration. The Kuttanadu-born Nair’s role in the “miraculous” appearance of Ram idols inside the Babri Masjid at midnight on December 22, 1949, while he was the District Collector of Faizabad, is fairly well known. But not so the serious allegations that Nair was also a land grabber, accused of having tried to accumulate vast tracts of property in Ayodhya and around for himself.
The entire story of Nair has been dwelt in detail by historians Krishna Jha and Dhirendra K.Jha in their seminal book, “Ayodhya: The Dark Night” (HarperCollins 2012). The book gave the first comprehensive look into the origin of events related to the “recapture of Ram Janmabhoomi” since the “mysterious” appearance of the child Ram’s idol inside the Babri Masjid in the early hours of December 22, 1949.
According to the book, Nair got transferred to his family’s ownership of large tracts of land held by Ranopali Nanakshahi temple located near Ayodhya. Later, Nair was accused in a civil suit of getting this transaction done by supplying opium to the temple’s elderly mahant, Kesav Das, who was an addict. The suit was filed by the........