THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: BJP state vice-president Shone George on Monday voiced concern over what he described as the “infiltration” of groups such as the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) and Jamaat-e-Islami into protest programmes organised by Churches in Kerala.
Shone told the TNIE that he had received clear evidence from trusted intelligence sources confirming the presence of these groups in the Church-led protests. Addressing a press conference, Shone alleged that elements of SDPI and Jamaat-e-Islami had participated in protests held in Kannur, Thalassery, Kozhikode, Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, Angamaly, Tiruvalla and Mananthavady in connection with the arrest of two Malayali nuns in Chhattisgarh recently.
Noting that these groups had previously targeted Christian churches and leaders, Shone said their sudden support for the Church was “not with good intentions”. He clarified that the BJP respected protests led by the Church, but warned that such infiltrations were “dangerous”.
He said the BJP had taken a “humanitarian stance” on the nuns’ issue.
Shone accuses Left of neglecting Christians
Shone asserted that the nuns’ release was made possible due to the neutrality maintained by the BJP and the Chhattisgarh government.
Criticising the Left, Shone accused the party of long neglecting Christians. He recalled that during the EMS government, the Left had filed an affidavit stating that Christians should not be given the same treatment as minorities.
Shone also alleged that the Pinarayi government had removed the rule requiring Christians to be part of the Minority Commission and had appealed to the Supreme Court against the verdict mandating that minority scholarships be proportional to population.
He contrasted the swift implementation of the Paloli Committee report for the backward sections of the Muslim community with the delay in publishing the J B Koshy report -- commissioned before the last assembly elections to address issues faced by backward sections of the Christian community -- which he said remained missing even after four years. He questioned whether the Pinarayi government dares to implement the Koshy report.
Asserting that Kerala’s Christians will no longer remain “political slaves of the Congress”, Shone vowed that the BJP would expose “wolves in sheep’s clothing” across the political spectrum.