BJP’s Christian push: Adding to Kerala’s political matrix
The voices emanating from the Church in Kerala must be music to BJP’s ears. The party knows now that one, and probably the only, way to break its Kerala jinx is to make it into the hearts of the sizeable Christian community. The party, despite its substantial presence, is yet to emerge as a serious political contender in the state, primarily because of its inability, so far, to solve Kerala’s demographic equation where minorities make up nearly half the population. Now that the church leaders have begun expressing views sympathetic to it, the party cannot be faulted for nursing hopes of making reasonable electoral gains.
The first such voice emerged when Thalassery bishop Joseph Pamplany indicated the community could help BJP win if the Centre ensured Rs 300/kg of rubber for farmers. Pamplany’s open declaration favouring a quid pro quo electoral deal stunned political parties. It set off a series of similar statements from prelates across church denominations. Cardinal George Alencherry, head of the numerically dominant Catholic Syro-Malabar Church, endorsed the theory that the BJP is gaining support within the community and said Christians do not feel insecure in India. A bishop of the Malankara Orthodox Church said there was no untouchability towards BJP and RSS.
These should be read in the context of BJP’s enthusiastic Christian outreach programme in Kerala. Christians form about 18% of the population, and BJP feels their support could propel it from being an also-ran to a winnable party. Kerala politics is set for a major change if the party successfully gains the trust and support of a significant proportion of the community. The Congress and the political front it leads will be the biggest losers. However, BJP cannot rely solely on these individual voices of support if it is looking for long-lasting political gains.
As Cardinal Alencherry said, the time when bishops dictated people’s political choices is over. While sympathetic words from priests may help BJP gain some extra Christian votes, the party may still come up short of getting the push it needs. In a state with strong ideological affiliations, BJP should look beyond wooing religious leaders to expand its foothold. Besides, it should be careful not to overestimate its influence within the community and be wary of getting carried away by the hype.