Protests have erupted on the Lakshadweep Islands, a small union territory off the coast of Kerala, after the administrator, former BJP minister Praful Khoda Patel, issued sweeping legal diktats that threaten the sociocultural and religious identities and practices of the people, the sensitive ecology, and economy. The island is also struggling with a rise in Covid infections after Patel relaxed the quarantine rules.

In this explainer, Meghnad S lays out the questions and concerns about these legal changes and how they would affect the islanders, their identities and their livelihoods.

Watch.

Research assistance by Ritika Chauhan.