KOCHI: The victory of the BJP in three Hindi heartland states has served as a morale booster for the party’s Kerala unit, which has started the process of rejuvenating the network at the grassroots. The party leadership is keen to remove the apprehensions in the minds of the Christian community in the backdrop of Manipur riots.
The party’s state committee will meet in Kottayam on Tuesday to chalk out a plan to relaunch ‘Snehayatra,’ the Christian outreach programme initiated during Easter.
After the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP has been trying to reach out to the Christian community, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had met the bishops of various denominations during his visit to the state in April this year.
However, the church started distancing itself from the party after the Manipur riots. Besides, the Bharat Jodo Yatra by Rahul Gandhi and the Congress’ landslide victory in Karnataka assembly polls created an impression that the grand old party may return to power at the Centre in 2024. But the victory in three Hindi heartland states has reaffirmed the BJP’s dominance, which the party state leadership thinks may inspire the Christian community to rethink.
The party has entrusted Union Minister V Muraleedharan and state vice-president K S Radhakrishnan to win the confidence of the community and the duo has been holding talks with Christian leaders.
“The pro-Hamas political rallies organised by the LDF and the UDF across the state have created concerns among the two major communities in the state. The victory of the BJP in three states has delivered a clear message that the Modi government will return to power in 2024. So I am sure that all denominations will understand the political climate and respond accordingly,” said BJP state president K Surendran.
Incidently, Malankara Orthodox Church’s Nilakkal diocese metropolitan Joshua Mar Nikodimos and secretary Fr Shaiju Kurian, St Thomas Evangelical Church of India Fellowship president Bishop George Eapen, Kerala Council of Churches general secretary Prakash P Thomas and former Poonjar MLA P C George had attended the anti-terror meeting organised by the BJP at Tiruvalla on November 24.
“The Christian community has realised the truth behind Manipur riots and have accepted the political reality. We expect a positive change in the approach of the community during the 2024 elections,” said Minority Morcha national vice president Noble Mathew.