Speakers: Col. (Dr.) Divakaran Padma Kumar Pillay, Research Fellow, Manohar Parikkar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses; and Dr. T.K. Vinod Kumar, IPS, Additional Director General of Police (Int.), Kerala Police

Chair: Dr. Adil Rasheed, Research Fellow and Coordinator of the Counter Terrorism Centre, Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses

Communal riots and terrorist attacks are one of the most extreme forms of violence that can occur in any society. It not only causes serious damage to property and loss of life, but also damages the social fabric. Communal conflicts also provide a fertile ground for rise of terror groups and the occurrence of terrorist attacks. Such conflicts and violence pose an existential threat to a diverse, multi religious democratic society. It is therefore the primary function of the state and the administration to monitor, prevent, and control the occurrence of communal conflict and terrorism in any society.
Kerala is one of the states in India with a high degree of religious diversity. While the diversity enhances the social and cultural vibrance of the society, it has posed a challenge for the rulers and administrators of the state historically. On the basis of a historic analyses of the relations between religious groups in the state, the talk addresses the challenges, tools, and processes of maintaining communal relationship in contemporary Kerala.