10-May-2026

The most notable bright spot of the 2026 assembly elections is clearly the manner in which voters in Kerala exercised their franchise; Not because they voted any particular party to power, but because they avoided voting along communal lines. The victories of three candidates in three assembly constituencies in God’s own country exemplify how the knowledgeable electorate refused to be swayed by what was happening in the rest of the states that went to poll. In Thavanur assembly constituency, where Muslims are the majority, a Christian candidate, VS Joy, was voted to power. He won by an impressive margin of 14,647 votes over his nearest rival. Likewise, in the Kalamassery assembly constituency, where Hindus are the majority community, a Muslim candidate, Abdul Gafoor, was elected, notching up 16,312 votes more than his rival. And, in the Christian-majority constituency of Kochin, another Muslim candidate, Mohammad Shiyas, humbled his closest opponent, getting a decent 8000 votes more than his opponent. These winning margins serve as evidence that none of them were elected by chance, but won through convincing mandates.

Therefore, in a time when the country is facing the daunting task of fighting communal forces, these victories were like fairy tales: stories that not only defeated the sinister designs of the divisive forces but were also like lights at the end of the tunnel, giving hope to people that the amber of the spirit of India is still burning; therefore, the country cannot thank them more.

For some time now, elections in India are turning out to be ‘hate’ manufacturing factories, overwhelmingly intoxicating and dreadful, with hate speeches forming the nucleus of electioneering. Speeches often weaponize religion and caste to polarise voters and secure electoral gains, frequently violating the so-called "Model Code of Conduct." In 2024, 98.5% of hate speeches were directed against the Muslims, while Christians faced 9.9% of the attacks. In 2025, this figure increased to 13%, which approximately works out to four instances of hate speeches directed daily against Muslims and Christians put together. What is concerning is, these hate speeches didn’t come only from the mouths of fringe elements or small-time self-proclaimed political leaders but also from high-profile political personalities. The extent of harm such actions must have inflicted on India's image as the world's largest democracy is difficult to quantify.

Though Indian laws for controlling hate speeches and the spread of enmity between people are well defined, the reluctance of the judiciary to effectively intervene, so also the direct or indirect leniency shown by the ECI and the law enforcing agencies, leave room for politicians to cross the red line. For example, section 123 (3A) of the Representation of the People Act 1951 defines the promotion of enmity between groups on grounds of religion, race, caste, or community as a "corrupt practice.". Section 125 of the Act prohibits any person in connection with an election promoting or attempting to promote enmity or hatred between citizens on the basis of religion, race, caste, community or language. Also, sections 153A, 295A, and 298 IPC prohibits speeches intended to outrage the religious feelings of others or incite enmity. Besides, the successive Model Code of Conduct release by the Election Commission of India forbids parties from engaging in activities that create mutual hatred. But, with institutions who are mandated to monitor and control such activities preferring to look the other way, the trend continues and have now become a norm rather than exception.

According to the South Asia Justice Campaign, hate speech has become normal in Indian public life, with slow enforcement allowing its spread like a contagious disease. The report links hateful campaign rhetoric to increased social tensions and physical attacks against minorities. Such rhetoric often serves to divert attention from substantive governance issues like unemployment, poverty, price rises, corruption, lack of accountability in institutes, and neglect of the common people's welfare. System failure, caused by complicity with the agendas of divisive forces, has increasingly reduced the effectiveness of watchdog groups and rights organisations. The mainstream media are compromised; therefore, they don’t question violations of laws by politicians, particularly if they belong to the ruling dispensation, while the unregulated social media platforms enable vested interest groups to spread communally sensitive rhetoric to their target audience to achieve electoral success. The sole intention of the political class, in other words, is to divide and rule.

In the midst of this heady atmosphere polluted by hate, lies, and corruption, it is truly commendable that voters in Kerala, particularly in these three constituencies, decide to follow their conscience and personal choice instead of succumbing to the divisive agendas which are trending. We salute them!