Cong, CPI(M) target Kerala BJP over its Easter outreach
Head of the Syro-Malabar church Cardinal Mar George Alancherry has lauded the “PM Modi’s statesmanship” and said Christians do not feel insecure any more.
Thiruvananthapuram:
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in Kerala on Sunday visited senior leaders of the Christian community to participate in Easter festivities in what is being seen as a bid to widen the party’s reach among the minority community, but the Congress and ruling CPI(M) took pot shots at the party.
While minister of state for external affairs V Muraleedharan visited the Latin Catholic church headquarters in the state capital and met Arch Bishop Mar George Netto, party national executive member P K Krishnadas called on Thalassery Arch Bishop Mar Joseph Pamplany and the party state president K Surendran met Thamarassery Bishop Mar Remijios Inchananiyil. “It was a courtesy call and we did not talk politics,” said Muraleedharan after his meeting with the Latin Catholic head.
In a related development, head of the Syro-Malabar church Cardinal Mar George Alancherry has lauded the “Prime Minister Modi’s statesmanship” and said Christians do not feel insecure in the country any more. But later church spokesman Father Antony Vadakkekara said it was not a political statement, but a general observation.
“It was an interview given to an English daily and it was not proper on its part to take out a few sentences and blew them up,” Vadakkekara said, adding the church continues to condemn attacks against its institutions and priests in some parts of north India.
But the Congress and CPI(M) cautioned the Christian community against the overtures of the BJP and reminded them about recent attacks against churches by fringe Hindu right-wing groups in north India.
State Congress president K Sudhakaran asked the community to beware of the “Dhritarashtra alinganam” (King Dhritarashtra’s wish to hug Bhim soon after Mahabharata battle). He also cited the recent Karnataka minister Muniratna’s hate speech against Christians. In an interview the minister had said “Christian missionaries were targeting slum population in a big way to convert and they should be handled physically”. Later a case was registered against the Karnataka minister.
The ruling CPI(M) said “crocodile tears will not fetch much political dividends” to the BJP in Kerala. “Christians are aware of the true colours of the party. Such dramas will not make any impact,” said the party secretariat in a statement.
After victory in north-eastern states recently, in which the BJP and its allies won three out of four states, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said Kerala will be next on the party’s agenda and state leaders are desperate to make inroads in Christian heartlands of the state.