Modern historians and sociologists challenge the traditional belief that Islam entered India through military conquest in 712 CE under Muhammad bin Qasim. They argue that Islam’s arrival was instead a gradual process shaped by centuries of trade, cultural exchange, and social interaction, particularly through Arab merchants who frequented India’s western coast for the pepper trade.

According to historian Syed Sulaiman Nadvi, Arab control of major trade routes after Islam’s emergence facilitated contact with southern India, leading to the rise of the Mappila Muslim community. Politician and writer Shashi Tharoor has also noted that Islam reached Kerala through trusted Arab traders, not by the sword. The Cheraman Juma Mosque, said to have been built in 629 CE under Malik bin Dinar, is cited as early evidence of Islam’s presence in Kerala.

Scholars further emphasize the role of Sufi orders such as the Chishti and Suhrawardi in spreading Islam’s spiritual and social values across India. Researchers like Richard Eaton link the religion’s expansion in Bengal and Punjab to agricultural development and state policies that encouraged new settlements around Sufi institutions.