The article discusses two terms including communal and communalism which are widely used in academic studies of the political process in Malaysia. The Democratic Action Party (DAP) is the principal opposition party of Malaysia and without it communal politics would not arise. Another political party called Partai Sosialis Rakyat Malaysia considers Barisan Nasional, DAP, and Parti Islam as communal. It is said that communalism elaborates those beliefs which support communal attitudes, orienations, and actions. Author K. J. Ratnam's book "Communalism and the Political Process in Malaya," does not give the clear picture of the word communalism. Rather it focuses on the intricacies of the political process of Malaysia.