The Lakshadweep Issue: Playing Dirty Politics Ignoring People's Wellbeing

The on-going Lakshadweep agitation against the recent policy reforms proposed by the present Administrator is very unfortunate. If the proposed reforms are seen impartially keeping aside the political interests in this issue nobody can justify the present unnecessary protests, particularly all the demonstrations in Kerala state that are being organized by the ruling political parties with the support of the opposition. One can understand the protests in Lakshadweep by some of the people there who are very anxious about some adverse affects of the present proposals. But how come it is a burning issue for the political parties in Kerala, particularly for the ruling left parties and their youth organizations?

Since the BJP-led NDA is the ruling party at the Centre and Lakshadweep is a Union Territory, it is natural that when the Administrator proposes to introduce some development policy reforms he is guided by the political philosophy of the NDA. This is all the Administrator has perhaps done. The people of Lakshadweep have their right to point out the defects in the proposals without going for agitations to get them corrected through peaceful means. Instead, the Kerala State Government with the support of their youth wings and opposition parties is using this opportunity for political gains.  Though the BJP and Communist parties have some presence in Lakshadweep, the NCP and the Congress are the dominant parties in Lakshadweep and this is an advantage for the LDF Government of Kerala to show their political strength. All non-NDA parties in Lakshadweep and in Kerala are together now up in arms against various policy proposals initiated by the Administrator. What else is this if it is not just a political game?

Never in the history of Indian Democracy has a State Assembly passed a resolution moved by the Chief Minister himself declaring solidarity to the people of another State or Union Territory.  The resolution pointed out that the atrocities being committed in Lakshadweep are worse than during colonial rule and that the Centre is trying to implement the saffron agenda the RSS and also to safeguard the corporate interests in Lakshadweep.  It is alleged that the proposed developmental model is destructive of the environment and is meant for the imposition of Hindutva values on the minority Muslim community. The resolution reminded that it is the Centre’s responsibility to ensure that people's interest.  The Kerala CM has urged the Centre to protect the interests of the people of Lakshadweep. He is now more interested in Lakshadweep people! Also, two MPs from Kerala, Mr. Hibi Eden and Mr. TN Prathapan have expressed their protests in front of the Lakshadweep Administration office in Kochi, demanding the President to call back the Administrator Praful Khoda Patel urgently. Those who support the protests include Congress leader Priyanka Vadodara, footballer CK Vineeth, and Film actor Prithviraj.

In fact, the Lakshadweep Animal Preservation Regulation 2021 brought by the Administrator Mr. Praful Khoda Patel is for banning the slaughter of cows, bulls and bullocks. This is surely an animal-friendly move and there is no reason for raising objections to this. However, a region with a population of 97 percent Muslims, of which 95 percent is categorized as tribal who are basically beef-eaters, may not be able to accept this law without protests.  But their allegation that Praful Khoda Patel is implementing the agenda of RSS is totally non-sense and therefore there is no justification for opposing the law on this count.  Also, the Anti-Social Activities Regulation Bill proposed by the Administrator is meant for the detention of suspects without the requirement of a court-issued warrant. How this can be called ‘Gunda Act’ by the protesters when Lakshadweep has been witnessing a rise in drug-related crimes in the recent period? All the more funny and foolish is the protest against the formation of the ‘Lakshadweep Development Authority’ for the planning and development of any area in Lakshadweep identified as having "bad layout or obsolete development" infrastructure. The Cantonment areas, of course, have been kept out of the purview of this regulation. The protesters allege that this is to safeguard the "real estate interests" against the small land holders of Schedule Tribe people. Another absurd allegation!

In fact, in the context of the rising Chinese interests in neighbouring Maldives and Sri Lanka in the recent past, there is every justification for focusing on infrastructure development in Laskhadweep, a strategically important small territory of India in the Indian Ocean, a region that attracted great attention of all major global powers. In fact, a similar situation exists now in Ladakh and the Northeastern states. The draft regulation that aims at "carrying out building, engineering, mining, quarrying or other operations" in Lakshadweep is being opposed most fiercely by local residents and activists, pointing out that it will affect the ecological fragility of the islands that are tiny, vulnerable and densely populated.

The Administrator has claimed that all his proposals are aimed at ensuring safety and well-being of the residents, and promoting the islands as a tourist destination on par with the Maldives. The Home Minister Amit Shah has pointed out that Mr. Patel’s proposed changes are just suggestions and have sought the public opinion on them from the citizens in Lakshadweep. He assured that no measures will be carried out without taking the people in the islands into confidence. The BJP leadership agrees that there should be proper discussions before taking any final decisions in people-centric subjects like this. It is good that the Modi Government is not approaching the present Lakshadweep controversy from any political angle. The people of Lakshadweep can, therefore, certainly hope for getting justice from the Central Government.