Insulting or undermining another faith to project one’s own as superior is not an act of tolerance but, as critics argue, outright blasphemy. This concern has resurfaced in Kerala after allegations that Shamju B.K., a staff member of the Economics and Statistics Department, made derogatory remarks against Sreekrishna and Jesus Christ during a Reading Day programme held on 4 July at the department’s conference hall. The incident, attended by the department’s director, went unaddressed at the time but has resurfaced after three months of internal discontent.
According to complaints later filed, Shamju narrated a crude story involving Prophet Nabi, Sreekrishna, and Christ. As per reports, it went almost as follows: “Nabi won the game when he, Sreekrishna, and Christ played marbles at Palayam Junction, Thiruvananthapuram. Then Nabi asked Krishna and Christ to show the tops of their knuckles so that he could strike them with the marble as punishment for losing. At this, Krishna lifted his clothes (an obscene expression in colloquial Malayalam). Jesus ran to the top of a nearby building and gestured to Krishna not to do it. That gesture, it was said, is represented by the statue of Christ in front of the church at Palayam Junction, with outstretched hands.
The sources say, the entire audience was shell-shocked to hear such a filthy speech. Yet the director remained silent and passive. Members of the audience urged him to take action against the speaker, but he did not do. Later, several complaints were lodged against Shamju, but all in vain.
The issue came to public attention when the NGO Sangh, a Non-Gazetted Officers association, filed a complaint before the Chief Secretary. Interestingly, in Kerala, the Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan, presides over Planning and Economic Affairs and oversees matters relating to economics and statistics.
Critics argue that this is a typical example of how blasphemy against non-Islamic faiths in Kerala often goes unpunished. The lady would not have dared to make even a fraction of such an obscene remark against the Prophet. It is not too long since the chopping of Prof. T.J. Joseph’s hand on 4 July 2010 by a PFI squad, after he set a Malayalam question paper for his college that allegedly contained an undesirable reference to the Prophet. The Christian management of the college went on to dismiss him.
Even after his retirement, it took several years before he was able to receive his pension benefits. Formerly, Hindus were the sole whipping boys, but now Christians too are being targeted. In Kerala, both the ruling CPM-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) are locked in fierce competition to appease the Islamic vote bank.
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