By P. Sreekumaran
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Bharatiya Janata Party’s desperate attempt to woo the Christian community in Kerala suffered another setback with the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council (KCBC) criticising the party over the arrest in Chhattisgarh of two nuns from the State over alleged conversion and human trafficking.
KCBC president Clement Baselios Cleemis, who sounded the note of warning, said the response of the community to the BJP’s friendship offer would depend on securing justice for the nuns who are behind the bars for no fault of theirs. The KCBC’s political stance would be decided by the BJP’s response to the nuns’ imprisonment. “If justice is not done, then what friendship can there be?” This was the question posed by the Cardinal, who voiced the community’s anger over the denial of bail to the two nuns, who were arrested following a complaint from the Bajrang Dal members. “The nuns are yet to get bail. This will be a criterion. Naturally, we will observe the developments and decide accordingly,” added the Cardinal.
Questioning the sincerity of the BJP’s outreach, the Cardinal said: “Everyone should act on what they preach and show sincerity. This is what we expect.”
The strong reaction of the KCBC has come at a time when the BJP is intensifying its attempts to woo the Christians in view of the local bodies elections later this year and the crucial Assembly elections next year.
That the charges of forced conversion and trafficking were baseless is evident from the statement of the BJP Kerala chief Rajeev Chandrasekhar himself rejecting the allegations against the nuns, Cleemis pointed out.
The Cardinal also appealed to all parties to rise above their political affiliations and speak out in support of the nuns, calling for their freedom and constitutional rights to be upheld.
He also expressed his gratitude to Kerala’s General Education Minister V Sivankutty for visiting him and extending the state government’s support.
Sivankutty has come down heavily on the BJP, saying that its claims of minority outreach were “hypocritical”. He also strongly criticised the union ministers from Kerala for maintaining deafening silence on the issue, and called it “dangerous and disappointing.” “If they’re targeting nuns today, priests could be next,” the minister said, and accused the BJP leaders of “wearing a mask.”
The arrest of the two Kerala Catholic nuns in BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh has unleashed a political storm, with the Congress and CPI(M) strongly condemning the move.
That there is no move on the part of the BJP to take corrective action is clear from the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai’s stand accusing the opposition of “politicising” the matter.
The two nuns who were arrested by the Chhattisgarh police are from the Assisi Sisters of Mary Immaculate, Sister Vandana of Udayagiri in Kannur and Sister Preethy Mary of Angamaly, who have been charged with forced religious conversion and human trafficking. All that the nuns were trying to do was to provide a source of livelihood for three Chhattisgarh girls hailing from an impoverished family.
And the Bajrang Dal’s charge of conversion is baseless as the girls hail from Pentecost families.
Moreover, the nuns had in their possession letters of permission from the parents of the girls. As a matter of fact, fact, the parents had approached the convent seeking employment for the girls after coming to know that Fatima Hospital in Agra, where the nuns worked, needed staff. The nuns, aware of the dangers of travelling with young native girls, had carried all the necessary documents, including, letters from the parents. Sr Vandana and Sr Preethy travelled to Durg from Agra just to accompany the girls as the journey was long and this was the first time the girls were travelling outside their village.
The arrests were made under suspicious circumstances. “The train ticket examiner (TTE), who is said to be a Bajrang Dal sympathiser, allegedly detained nuns at the railway police’s office at Durg station. When the nuns came, they were told that all they had to do was show the tickets and take the girls to board the train. But when they entered the office, their attitude changed. The police went on to confiscate the phones of the girls and the nuns.
Needless to say, the incident has left a trail of bitterness and resentment. One thing is for sure. Unless the saffron camp changes its attitude – highly unlikely – and release the arrested nuns, the BJP’s minority-outreach programme in Kerala would come a cropper. Now that the KCBC has taken a tough stand on the sensitive issue, more Christian organisations can be expected to follow suit. The Chhattisgarh incident exposes the yawning gap between the BJP’s minority-friendly pronouncements and its actions to the contrary. (IPA Service)
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