24 August,2026 01:30 PM IST | Thiruvananthapuram | mid-day online correspondent
Shashi Tharoor. File pic
Congress leader and Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor has described as "disturbing" a report highlighting findings from a World Bank study that examined gender attitudes among migrants returning to Kerala from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries.
Tharoor responded to a social media post discussing the study, which found that return migrants from Saudi Arabia tended to hold more conservative views on gender-based violence and attitudes concerning physical violence against women compared with people who had no migration experience.
"These are disturbing reports," Tharoor said in his response, warning that the findings raised questions about the influence of conservative social attitudes acquired overseas.
Tharoor said Kerala had historically been home to what he described as a liberal and progressive practice of Islam, which he said was consistent with the state's tradition of coexistence and communal harmony.
He also pointed to Kerala's record of providing education to Muslim girls and women at levels comparable to boys and men.
"The import of conservative and even reactionary attitudes and customs from abroad, as suggested by this report, is fundamentally at variance with what Kerala has long been about," he said, calling for serious introspection and internal discussion within the Muslim community.
The social media post to which Tharoor responded referred to a World Bank study examining whether migration to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries had influenced gender norms among return migrants in Kerala.
The research looked beyond the economic impact of migration and remittances to examine its potential social consequences. Gulf migration has played a significant role in Kerala's economy, with remittances from workers abroad supporting families and contributing to local economic activity.
However, the study also examined whether exposure to different social environments during migration was associated with changes in attitudes and social norms after migrants returned to Kerala.
According to the study's findings, there was a notable difference between migrants returning from Saudi Arabia and return migrants from the broader Gulf region.
Compared with people who had no migration experience, returnees from Saudi Arabia displayed attitudes towards gender-based violence that were three standard deviations more conservative.
The study also found more conservative attitudes among Saudi returnees concerning the perpetration of physical violence against women when compared with people who had no migration experience.
Interestingly, the broader group of migrants returning from Gulf countries showed the opposite pattern in relation to the attitudes examined in the research.
This distinction is significant because it suggests that the social impact of migration may vary depending on the destination country and the experiences migrants have while living and working abroad.
The research was conducted under the World Bank's Social Sustainability and Inclusion Global Practice and sought to examine the social consequences of migration alongside the substantial economic benefits generated by Gulf remittances.
The researchers have cautioned that the findings establish an association rather than proving that migration to Saudi Arabia itself causes more conservative attitudes.
Several factors could potentially influence attitudes among migrants and their families, and the study's findings do not by themselves establish a direct cause-and-effect relationship between migration and changes in views on gender-based violence.
The distinction is important in interpreting the research, particularly given the sensitive nature of the subject and the diversity of experiences among Kerala's large migrant population.
The study's findings, along with Tharoor's response, have brought renewed attention to the possible social and cultural effects of Gulf migration in Kerala.
Tharoor's comments have also opened a broader discussion about whether social attitudes acquired abroad can influence communities after migrants return to the state.
While Gulf migration has delivered substantial economic benefits to Kerala through remittances, the study raises questions about its less visible social effects. Tharoor has urged serious introspection within the Muslim community, particularly over attitudes that he said could conflict with Kerala's established traditions of education, social coexistence and gender equality.
(With inputs from IANS)
