By P. Sreekumaran
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Union Government’s decision to amend the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) has caused a severe setback to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) much-hyped Christian outreach programme in Kerala.
The decision, which has come at a most inopportune time, has upset the BJP’s calculations, especially in central Kerala, with the crucial Assembly elections just a few days away.
The party will find it extremely difficult to assuage the anger voiced by the Christian community, which feels that the decision is a shocking assault on the rights of minorities. Unless reversed, the decision will affect the chances of BJP candidates in central Kerala, where the party was hoping to make a big breakthrough.
What is worrying the BJP’s leadership is that the sensitive issue has begun to dominate the political discourse in the State. The Left Democratic Front (LDF) has lost no time in its efforts to cash in on the BJP’s political blunder. The growing perception within the Christian community is that the decision will be weaponised to tighten control over minority institutions.
The BJP’s repeated assertions that the proposed amendments are meant only to curb money laundering has failed to convince Christian voters. If anything, the Union Government’s ‘assurances’ have only steeled the resolve of the Christian community to oppose the FCRA amendment move tooth and nail.
For instance, Pala Bishop Joseph Kallarangatt has taken strong exception to the shift the FCRA from a regulatory framework to a controlling one. He also lashed out at the logic behind the curbs that could seriously stifle charitable work. The new FCRA bill, he averred, seems aimed at sidelining linguistic and religious minorities and their international networks. Such measures cannot but have an adverse effect on poor Christians, he added.
That Archbishop Thomas Tharayil; of the Changanassery Archdiocese and Baselios Marthoma Mathews of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church have joined the chorus of criticism signals a hardening of the Christian opposition to the bill.
At present, the Union Government has implemented proper guidelines for receiving and utilising FCRA funds. The funds cannot be received without submitting proper data. The money is used for charitable and educational purposes in various parts of the country. Blocking these funds would affect the functioning of such institutions. However, the amendment states that if an FCRA licence is not renewed, the Government will take action. The question is: who is responsible for the renewal process? This has raised serious alarm within the Christian community.
The gravity of the problem can be gauged from the fact that the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Conference (KCBC) has decided to convene an urgent meeting to decide on the future course of action if the Union Government goes ahead with the bill. It may be mentioned that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), the apex body of the Catholic church in the country, had, in an earlier statement, described the legislation as a threat to the ‘operational survival’ of minorities and civil society organisations. It strongly opposes the provision that empowered the Union Government to deny licence renewals and subsequently assume control over the institutions, funds and assets of minority organisations through a newly designed authority.
Even if the Union Government decides to withdraw the bill, the very decision to amend the FCRA has severely dented the credibility of the Union Government and the BJP.
Understandably, the political opposition, too, has been swift. Both the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress-headed United Democratic Front(UDF) have supported the Church’s position. Failure to do so would cast a shadow on the prospects of both the fronts as the Christian community can decisively influence the voting pattern in central Travancore besides high ranges of Malabar.
On his part, Kerala Congress(Mani) chairman Jose k. Mani, who is contesting from Pala, has termed the Bill as “poison coated in sugar’. Francis George, leader of the rival KC faction in the UDF also questioned the timing of the move.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has taken the lead by writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi raising objections to the Bill. So has leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
Expectedly, the BJP leaders are a worried lot. They know that if the Bill is not withdrawn, the marginal gains they have made in reaching out to the Christian voters, especially in central Kerala, will be lost. Even a few BJP leaders, who preferred anonymity, admitted the setback suffered by the party.
BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar has sought to play down the significance of the Bill. The argument that the Bill will affect the Christian community is baseless, he contended.
Union Minister George Kurien, who is the BJP candidate from Kanjirappally constituency sought to rebut criticism of the Bill. Of the nearly 10,000 applications received annually for FCRA licence, about 3,000 are from minority communities. Fears that the minorities are being discriminated against are misplaced, he argued, adding that there are mechanisms for appeal, clarification and even restoration of institutions that have become defunct.
Needless to say, the Bill has cast a shadow over the BJP’s ambitious plan to woo the Christian community. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has fielded a large number of candidates from the community in Christian-dominated constituencies such as Pala, Kanjirappally, Poonjar and Thiruvalla. Now that the bill is hanging like a Damocles sword over the Christian community, the BJP will find it hard to secure its support. (IPA Service)
