I view Kerala as among the most politicised societies in the world. Kerala had earned the distinction of fostering the World’s first democratically elected communist government. Does that explain why its trade union movement turned out to be so irresponsible and unreasonable? Going on strikes at the drop-of-a-hat are next to impossible in most communist regimes, because they do not have the extent of democracy that Indian constitution provides. I am always surprised by the fact that even at the high schools (or middle schools?!), there is a tacit involvement of political parties in grooming their future cadres, through the help of teachers who are active party card-holders. In rest of the world, political participation usually begins at the university level. In the case of Kerala, at colleges and Universities one even comes across lecturers and professors (not sure of the Principals) openly touting their party affiliations.
Another important distinction of Kerala is the active political participation of its religious minorities. Muslims and Syrian Christians have their own political parties, thus giving every issue in the State a religious overtone. The pulpits end up as the election campaign platforms as-and-when-needed.
So what we see in Kerala is an overdose of politicisation, which has the unfortunate outcome of people having a much skewed political awareness leaning towards rights, and conveniently ignoring the obligations that go hand-in-hand. Despite the presence of dime-a-dozen Godmen and Godwomen in Kerala, ones innate sense of right and wrong is sacrificed at the altars of the self-serving agenda of ones kin, class, caste, or religious group.
Perhaps, there-in lies the problem…we have thrown the proverbial baby (ideals of justice and fairness) with the bathwater (the migration of its literate and skilled human potential). What's left behind is anybody’s guess!?!
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