The Catholic Church and most of the Muslim organisations in Kerala are up in arms against the proposal for a Bill to penalise parents who beget more than two children as part of efforts for effective population regulation in the State. The 12-member Commission on Welfare of Women and Children, headed by retired Supreme Court judge VR Krishna Iyer, wants couples begetting more than two children to be imprisoned for three months or made to pay a fine of Rs 10,000 and organisations working against the regulation to be censured. Objections to the proposal have come up simultaneously from within the panel and outside. A woman member of the panel says she does not support the proposal while the Catholic Church holds that Government has no right to restrict family size. Protests came up from among the Muslim organisations too, naturally. The Congress-led UDF Government of Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has already given enough indications that it may not pass such a Bill. It simply cannot do that as it is surviving on a wafer-thin majority of just three seats in the 140-member Assembly. For this, it is heavily dependent on the Muslim League and the Kerala Congress (M) which is a party based on the Catholic Church’s support. Kerala Congress (M) chairman and Law Minister KM Mani has removed all doubts by rejecting the proposal as impractical in a democracy. Predictably, the CPI(M), leader of the LDF, whose previous Government had appointed the commission to propose ways and means to enhance the welfare of women and children, does not see any reason to speak on the subject.
Kerala’s demography increasingly skewed
The sentiment behind the objections of the Church to the proposed Bill is totally different from that of the Muslims. The Catholic Church had launched a campaign called the Pro-Life Movement three years ago to strengthen the believers’ population in the context of its falling growth rate and the rapid rise in the Muslim population. As per the 2001 Census, Christians comprised 19 per cent of Kerala’s then population of over 31 million, showing a drop from the 1991 Census finding of 19.5 per cent. The Church is understandably worried about the fall in Christian population growth. It also wants Hindus to view the situation seriously as the rate of fall in their population growth at 1.55 per cent per decade is far more critical with the Muslim population growing at the rate of 1.75 per cent. The Church’s objection to the proposed Bill does not seem misplaced in this context. Unless checked now, Kerala will become a Muslim majority State.
Kerala’s demography increasingly skewed
The sentiment behind the objections of the Church to the proposed Bill is totally different from that of the Muslims. The Catholic Church had launched a campaign called the Pro-Life Movement three years ago to strengthen the believers’ population in the context of its falling growth rate and the rapid rise in the Muslim population. As per the 2001 Census, Christians comprised 19 per cent of Kerala’s then population of over 31 million, showing a drop from the 1991 Census finding of 19.5 per cent. The Church is understandably worried about the fall in Christian population growth. It also wants Hindus to view the situation seriously as the rate of fall in their population growth at 1.55 per cent per decade is far more critical with the Muslim population growing at the rate of 1.75 per cent. The Church’s objection to the proposed Bill does not seem misplaced in this context. Unless checked now, Kerala will become a Muslim majority State.
