Explained : Fraternity Satyagraha in Guruvayur Signals United Resistance to Communal Politics in Kerala and Its Impact

Guruvayur, Thrissur, Kerlam: Rejecting the communal statements made by Guruvayur constituency BJP candidate B. Gopalakrishnan and the support extended to him by the state BJP president, activists of the Wake Up Keralam movement organised a Fraternity Satyagraha at P. Krishna Pillai Square in Guruvayur, Thrissur district, Kerala.

Wake Up Keralam is a broad-based movement comprising writers, socio-cultural activists, and workers from diverse sectors of society across Kerala. The movement aims to strengthen resistance against Hindutva communal fascist forces that are attempting to gain ground in the state.

Inaugurating the Fraternity Satyagraha, eminent writer Prof. Sarah Joseph stated that the remarks of the BJP leader signal the entry of the divisive politics long practised by Sangh Parivar organisations into Kerala. She emphasised that this is a critical time for Kerala to remain vigilant and united.

A message from Wake Up Keralam President and renowned poet Prof. K. Sachidanandan was read out at the event. His poem ‘Muslim’ was presented by Vineesh Aaradhya.

The programme, presided over by Dr. Khadeeja Mumtaz, Vice Chairperson of the Wake Up Keralam Movement, was attended by several prominent personalities, including writer P.N. Gopikrishnan, Gandhian thinker Prof. K.P. Sankaran, environmentalist C.R. Neelakantan, senior journalist P.J. Mathew, peace activist Prof. Susan John, social thinker K.A. Mohandas, P.N. Provind, T.K. Vasu, Sheela Tomy, K. Sivaran, N. Subramanian, Sreeja Arangottukara, and Equal Representation activists M. Sulfath and Neju Ismail.

Senior journalist N. Madhavankutty conveyed a special message from CPI(ML) Liberation All India Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, noting that secular movements across India are closely watching the progress of the Wake Up Keralam movement. Dr. Smitha P. Kumar read out the Guruvayur Declaration of the Fraternity Satyagraha.

The cultural segment featured Sufi poems by prominent singer Sameer Binsi, folk songs by Jayashree Nattuir, and poetry recitation by P.N. Gopikrishnan.

The Satyagraha, held from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm, was led by Sarath Cheloor, Ajitha Usman, S. Babuji Kottayam, P.O. Sunny Kollam, Sudheesh Yezhuvath, T.R. Ramesh, Ravi Paloor, Dr. K.P. Kaladharan, P.C. Mohanan, K.K. Babu, I. Gopinath, K M Venugopal, Manoj Mash, P.K. Kittan, V.K. Sreedharan, and Surendran C.S and Suresh A.S.

Leaders of the Wake Up Keralam Movement declared that they will not permit communal fascist organisations to reverse the progressive social changes achieved in Kerala through its renaissance movements. They affirmed their resolve to mount a strong and united resistance in the coming days by forging alliances with various progressive forces. The Fraternity Satyagraha held in Guruvayur marks the beginning of this campaign, with similar programmes to be organised across Kerala through people’s initiatives.

Fraternity Satyagraha Declaration: Guruvayoor Declaration

We, the participants in this Fraternity Satyagraha, who have gathered from every corner of Kerala in fierce opposition to the venomous politics of hatred and division relentlessly propagated by the Sangh Parivar, declare our unyielding, uncompromising commitment to the principles of democ­racy, secularism, pluralism, and human dignity—the very bedrock of Indian polity. We stand united not against the genuine beliefs of any community, but in ferocious, unrelenting resistance against the forces that seek to shred our social fabric through the poison of majoritarianism, communal polarization, and authoritarian stranglehold.

We firmly believe that this declaration will serve as a devastating indictment of the neo-fascist tendencies that have gripped our nation and as a powerful roadmap to dismantle them through rigorous democratic debate, harmonious coexistence, and resolute collective action. We utterly reject the politics of fear, exclusion, and bigotry. We solemnly pledge to defend and uphold the magnificent idea of an India deeply rooted in the vibrant plurality of its cultures, languages, and beliefs.

To grasp the burning urgency of this united stand, we must confront the dangerous ascent of Indian far-right politics, spearheaded by the Sangh Parivar. Founded in 1925 by K.B. Hedgewar in Nagpur as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the organization took shape amid colonial subjuga­tion and the global surge of authoritarian nationalism. It drew explicit organizational inspiration from the European fascist models of that era—with their rigid paramilitary discipline, strict hierar­chy, and obsessive emphasis on cultural uniformity. The RSS proudly positions itself as the ideo­logical fountainhead of Hindutva, or Hindu nationalism.

In sharp, irreconcilable contrast to the secular and pluralistic nation envisioned by the towering architects of our Constitution, including Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the Sangh Parivar aggressively pro­pounds a vision of a ‘Hindu Rashtra’ in which citizenship and national identity are brutally defined by religious and cultural majoritarianism. Early leaders like M.S. Golwalkar left no room for ambi­guity, brazenly portraying non-Hindus as existential threats to national unity.

After independence, the Sangh Parivar methodically expanded into a vast, sinister network of over 50 affiliated organizations. These include the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as its political arm, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) for aggressive religious mobilization, the Bajrang Dal for street-level intimidation, student fronts like the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, and cultural-educa-tional outfits like Vidya Bharati. Banned in the wake of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination and again during the 1975 Emergency, the RSS cunningly rebuilt its strength by infiltrating social move­ments, trade unions, and educational institutions. Its malignant growth surged dramatically in the 1980s and 1990s. The Ram Janmabhoomi movement, which culminated in the barbaric demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, triggered horrific communal violence and catapulted the BJP from marginal status to a formidable national force. By 1998, the BJP had stitched together its first coalition government; by 2014, it had seized a decisive parliamentary majority under lifelong RSS pracharak Narendra Modi. This electoral triumph was no accident but the calculated outcome of a meticulously orchestrated strategy: exploiting popular economic discontent, deploying sophisti-

cated digital propaganda warfare, forging alliances with corporate power, and relentlessly pushing polarizing narratives centered on ‘love jihad’, cow protection vigilantism, and manufactured his­torical grievances.

The expansion of the far-right has been staggering and deeply alarming. Today, the RSS commands millions of members and tens of thousands of branches (shakhas). Through systematic cadre de­ployment and relentless ideological indoctrination, it has deeply embedded itself within the police, judiciary, media, academia, and even the armed forces. Its explicit agenda to replace constitutional secularism with majoritarian tyranny is glaringly evident in measures such as the Citizenship Amend­ment Act (CAA), the unilateral abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, and the aggres­sive push for a uniform civil code. This toxic blend of hyper-nationalism, virulent anti-minority hatred, brutal suppression of dissent through draconian sedition laws, raids on dissenting organiza­tions, and media censorship, combined with the cult-like worship of a single leader, reveals its true authoritarian character. The Sangh Parivar shamelessly weaponizes history to stoke Hindu nation­alism, systematically erases India’s pluralistic traditions, promotes a dangerous militarized mascu­linity, and forges alliances with global far-right networks. While its brand of economic neoliberalism has widened inequalities, its cultural majoritarianism has cunningly diverted public rage toward vulnerable minorities, fostering a pervasive atmosphere of surveillance, fear, and vigilantism. Lynch-ings, ‘bulldozer raj’, targeted violence against Muslims, Christians, Dalits, and social activists are not aberrations but deliberate instruments designed to normalize exclusion and hatred in the name of national unity.

We must confront the stark and undeniable truth: while the Sangh Parivar incessantly trumpets the virtues of nationalism and patriotism, it is ruthlessly pursuing viciously anti-national economic and political policies that betray the very soul of India.

They perceive no anti-national treachery whatsoever in chaining the Indian economy to the preda­tory global network of finance capital, nor in shamelessly subordinating the sacred interests of Indian farmers to the rapacious monopolies of America and Europe. They remain utterly blind and indifferent to the grotesque obscenity of the American regime deporting Indians in chains, just as they offer no resistance to its relentless military aggression against Palestine, Iran, and Venezuela. In their profound ideological bankruptcy, they contemptuously reject the authentic Indian national consciousness forged through heroic anti-imperialist struggles, and instead perpetuate—through cunning new disguises—the same imperialist subservience once shamelessly championed by Savarkar and Golwalkar.

These forces are now engineering hollow, artificial victories by systematically and thoroughly cor­rupting the entire electoral process at its roots. They consolidate their illegitimate power through an unrelenting cascade of brazen corruptions: brazenly appointing their own loyal subordinates as election commissioners, imposing fraudulent and malicious reforms such as the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), ruthlessly coercing both elected and unelected political leaders through vile threats and filthy bribery, engaging in widespread tampering with electronic voting machines, and bra­zenly institutionalizing ‘vote theft’ as a normalized instrument of their dominance.

We recognize with grave concern that this neo-fascist project is now launching a ferocious assault to establish a firm foothold in our beloved Kerala—a state long revered as an unassailable bastion of secularism, high literacy, profound social reform, and enlightened democratic governance. Kerala’s glorious history of radical land reforms, robust public health and education systems, and harmoni­ous coexistence among Hindu, Muslim, and Christian communities has consistently repelled the divisive onslaught of Hindutva ideology. The state’s dominant two-front politics—led by the Left Democratic Front and the United Democratic Front—has historically kept the BJP at bay. Yet we must remain vigilant: the Sangh Parivar has been meticulously plotting its infiltration into Kerala for decades. At present, with thousands of shakhas and extensive outreach, RSS workers have

contacted over 22 lakh households—including minority homes—distributing propaganda literature and forging insidious networks. Recent spectacles such as the ‘Hindu Ekta Sammelanam’ (Hindu Unity Conferences) cynically masquerade as cultural events while mobilizing temple committees, community organizations, and youth under the false banner of ‘unity’. In the lead-up to the 2026 assembly elections, these efforts are intensely focused on key constituencies like Nemom. While publicly peddling toxic narratives of ‘love jihad’, halal boycotts, and imaginary external threats, the Sangh Parivar quietly exploits local grievances to advance its agenda.

The ultimate objective of the Sangh Parivar’s Kerala strategy is crystal clear: to sow deep Islamophobia, infiltrate educational and cultural institutions, and forge opportunistic alliances with disaffected groups—often amplified through propaganda tools like the film ‘The Kerala Story’. They brazenly brand inter-community marriages, joint festivals, and courageous resistance to casteism as mortal threats to ‘Hindu unity’. They openly scorn Kerala’s progressive, inclusive traditions. Their insidious tactic involves importing North Indian models of communal polarization, engineer­ing clashes, and attempting to fracture social harmony through provocative processions laced with inflammatory slogans. We must recognize that this well-funded, nationally backed infiltration poses an existential threat to Kerala’s unique and exemplary development model, which is firmly an­chored in equality, social justice, and harmonious coexistence. They are determined to tear apart the secular fabric of this proud land and impose a monolithic identity that shamelessly privileges one community while brutally marginalizing others.

Nevertheless, we remain steadfastly confident that neo-fascism can and must be decisively coun­tered through the invincible weapons of democratic debate, coexistence, and Satyagraha. Demo­cratic debate is not empty rhetoric but the rigorous, fearless clash of ideas grounded in truth and reason. We must relentlessly expose how majoritarianism viciously undermines the equality, frater­nity, and secularism solemnly guaranteed by our Constitution (Articles 14–18). It is glaringly evi­dent that the so-called ‘cultural nationalism’ peddled by the Sangh Parivar is nothing but a discrimi­natory amnesia that deliberately ignores India’s rich integrative heritage—including Sufi-Bhakti traditions, Dravidian social reforms, and Kerala’s own renaissance led by luminaries such as Sree Narayana Guru and Ayyankali. We are profoundly inspired by the heroic anti-colonial national struggles, the fiery grassroots movements, and the relentless workers’ uprisings led by towering patriots such as Gandhi, Ambedkar, and hundreds of other fearless visionaries. We draw unyielding strength from the sacred memory of the immortal martyrs who made the ultimate sacrifice, laying down their lives with unflinching courage for these sacred causes of freedom, dignity, and justice. We must confront propaganda with unassailable facts through transparent, courageous debate. We must demonstrate that communal violence and hate speech are intimately linked to economic dis­tress and social injustice. We must prove that human development indices flourish in pluralistic societies like Kerala, not under oppressive majoritarian regimes.

Coexistence must be proclaimed unequivocally and without apology. We must weave strong threads of mutual understanding through sustained interfaith dialogues, vibrant multicultural festivals, com­munity kitchens that shatter food taboos, and powerful solidarity campaigns against hatred. We must counter poisonous films and artworks that breed animosity and division with compelling narratives of unity and shared humanity. The resolute rejection of the film ‘The Kerala Story’ by the people of Kerala stands as powerful testimony that hate politics has no place on Kerala’s soil.

Satyagraha embodies non-violent yet resolute civil disobedience. Our methods must remain strictly peaceful: mass protests, boycotts of hate-driven campaigns, relentless legal battles against uncon­stitutional laws, and widespread education on core constitutional values. To achieve this, we must forge broad, inclusive alliances that unite people across all castes, religions, and regions; fiercely defend a free and independent media and judiciary; and champion economic justice alongside cul­tural harmony.

Confronting neo-fascism demands unwavering institutional vigilance. We must resist central poli­cies that erode federalism, protect minority institutions, and reform education to prioritize critical thinking over majoritarian distortions of history. In Kerala, we must build robust local resistance by empowering panchayats, cooperatives, and cultural fronts to neutralize the growing influence of the Sangh Parivar.

This Fraternity Satyagraha fills us with profound hope. Coexistence is not mere tolerance—it is a joyous celebration. We envision an India where vigorous debate strengthens democracy, exhilarat­ing diversity drives innovation, and unflinching justice heals historical wounds. The Sangh Parivar’s century-long project may appear formidable, yet history repeatedly proves that truth ultimately triumphs over fabricated lies and manufactured hatred. Let this historic gathering mark the power­ful beginning of a nationwide resistance movement.

Let us boldly declare that our society shall never be defined by hate. Let us march forward together, armed with democratic debates that illuminate the enduring bonds of fraternity and humanity that unite us as one society.

With Love & Fraternity,

Wake Up Keralam

(P. Krishna Pilla Square,Guruvayoor) 2026 March 29th, Guruvayoor