The Government of Kerala agreed in principle to examine the recommendation that no particular minority community should be disproportionately represented in the Kerala State Commission for Minorities. The decision was made clear in the General Administration Department’s March 2 order.
The recommendation came as part of the JB Koshy Commission for Christian Minorities report released by the state government recently. The Commission felt that it would be appropriate if the Chairman and Member of the Kerala State Commission for Minorities should be selected from different minority communities.
What prompted the commission to issue its recommendation were certain representations it received regarding the substitution of one word for another when the Kerala State Commission for Minorities Act was amended in 2018.
In the law, in the section on the establishment of the State Commission for Minorities, it is stated that its chairman should be an individual belonging to a minority community. The original sub-sections further added that of the remaining two members, one should be a “member of another minority community” and the other a woman belonging to a minority community.
In its report, the commission says that when the law was amended in 2018, the word “other” was replaced by “and” in the first instance. This change effectively allows the chairperson and member to be from the same community.
The commission noted that the government should look into the matter as it requires consideration by the State Assembly.
Published – 06 March 2026 20:39 IST
