Explained | Why are people in Lakshadweep protesting?

A series of administrative reforms have the people protesting

Over the last few days #SaveLakshadweep has been trending on social media. Alongside, protests have broken out in the Union Territory. All of this is in response to a series of administrative reforms that have been introduced since December 2020 after the administration was changed.

Who is the administrator in-charge of Lakshadweep?

Praful Patel is a BJP leader who has been appointed as the administrator of Lakshadweep since December 2020. He was the former home minister of the state of Gujarat.

What are the administrative reforms he has introduced?

On an island where crime rate is already low, Patel introduced a proposal to implement the anti-social Activities Regulation bill, 2021, or the goonda act. Under this act anyone can be arrested without a trial for a period of up to one year.

A draft on the Lakshadweep Development Authority Regulation 2021 (LDAR) has been another bone of contention. The draft gives the administrator powers to remove or relocate islanders from their property, for town planning or any developmental activity.

The draft bill gives the government and its bodies arbitrary and unchecked power to directly interfere with an islander’s right to possess and retain their property.

The new proposal also includes introduction of liquor shops on the islands, to fuel tourism, which thus far have been restricted owing the majority Muslim population.

A change is also being brought about to the Panchayat regulations wherein those people having more than two kids would be unable to contest for any panchayt elections.

Among a string of changes, a beef ban has been proposed and non-vegetarian meals have been scrapped from the midday meals.

As for Covid norms, earlier on the islands a mandatory 14-day quarantine was put into place, however now a negative RT-PCR would suffice to enter the islands. This has caused concern for the locals.

Who is protesting?

Alongside the islanders and people on social media, opposition leaders in Lakshadweep and neighbouring Kerala have raised cause for concern.

Kerala lawmaker Hibi Eden, wrote a letter to to President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Modi. In the letter, he claimed that the many government contract employees in the tourism sector were terminated without any reason. "Majority of the 70,000 people in this Island depend on fishing and government services, but the new administration demolished huts of fisherman accusing Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) violation," he wrote.

Lakshadweep lawmaker and NCP's Mohammed Faizal and his colleagues from neighbouring Kerala—TN Prathapan (Congress), Elamaram Kareem (CPI-M) and ET Mohammed Basheer (Muslim League) have urged the Centre to recall Patel.

In a letter to the President, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal alleged that the current administrator of Lakshadweep Praful Patel had taken "authoritarian measures" and demanded his recall.

However, the Centre has said that these changes would bring about development.