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Having been born and brought up in a Namboodiri landlord family in Kerala’s only Muslim majority district before independence, this author has seen how, as part of untouchability, Kerala also had ‘unapproachability’.

For those practicing this casteist norm, an Ezhava, part of other backward classes (OBC), must be kept off 30 feet lest the ‘upper’ caste person get ‘polluted’. For Dalits, the rule was 60 feet, and for unassimilated tribals, 100 feet. The feudal system had ruthlessly imposed these social mores before the birth of the Indian constitution. 

Curiously, there was no such restriction for Muslims and Christians; they could approach an ‘upper’ caste Hindu without the latter fearing getting ‘polluted’ by them. 

I bring this up only to underline a curious aspect of the Kerala psyche. It was casteist towards Hindus but could be ‘syncretic’ towards others. 

Vavar, a Muslim associate of the Sabarimala deity, has a mosque near the temple and Hindus make it a point to visit it. The 14th century Koratti Muthi church was uniquely constructed on land gifted by the local Raja. It retains many Hindu features. There are several more such cases. 

For those coming from a pluralistic background, it is agonising to find the mindless ghettoisation being pursued by the Modi-Shah duo as a well thought out political strategy during the past 11 years. Communal ‘othering’ is the chief instrument in their toolkit to create and maintain an assured vote bank. 

Before Modi, the BJP could not come to power without the support of the minority groups. “The BJP believes that Indian Muslims are an integral part of the nation,” the party had said in a 2005 political resolution, adding: “However, since Independence, the Congress has viewed Muslims purely as a vote-bank. In the process, their  pressing issues such as modern education, living conditions,........

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