On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi used the Bible to target the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) in Kerala over the gold smuggling case. Speaking at a BJP rally in Palakkad, Modi said, "Judas betrayed Lord [Jesus] Christ for a few pieces of silver. LDF has betrayed Kerala for a few pieces of gold."
Not surprisingly, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has hit back strongly at the comments by Modi. Speaking at his daily press conference on Thursday, Pinarayi Vijayan noted the comments by Modi were intended to attract some groups, alluding to the BJP's attempts to court some Christian churches.
Pinarayi Vijayan spoke about incidents of violence targeting Christians that were perpetrated by groups linked to the BJP.
Pinarayi Vijayan said, "Some people try to woo people by mentioning the names of Jesus Christ and Judas. These are the same people who trouble the Christian community, denying them the freedom to pray and travel in other parts of the country. Nobody here has forgot Graham Staines and his two kids. Nobody has forgot Kandhamal. The fact that those behind these incidents have been given positions in the Union government is not a matter that can be easily forgotten.”
Graham Staines was a missionary from Australia, who was burnt alive with his two young sons, in Keonjhar, Odisha, in 1999 by alleged members of the Bajrang Dal, who claimed he had been engaged in religious conversions. Kandhamal district in Odisha saw widespread violence against Christians in 2008 after a Hindu religious leader was killed. According to reports, at least 39 Christians were killed, 232 churches destroyed and around 5,600 houses looted in the violence.
With reference to positions in the Union government, Pinarayi Vijayan appeared to be alluding to Pratap Chandra Sarangi, a minister of state in the Narendra Modi government. Sarangi was the Odisha state convenor of the Bajrang Dal when Staines and his sons were killed.
Pinarayi claimed "two genocides" had taken place in the country and noted they were the anti-Sikh riots of 1984 and the anti-Muslim riots in Gujarat in 2002.
Interestingly, Modi was not the only leader who quoted from the Bible in the Kerala election campaign. Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday criticised Modi for quoting from the Bible but not doing anything for nuns who were harassed in Jhansi. Speaking in Thrissur, Priyanka said there was nothing more hollow than quoting from the Bible "to sow seeds of division and hatred in the country".
"There is nothing more farcical than quoting the lines of Jesus on a political stage and unleashing the prosecution on those whose lives are spent on serving the poor," Priyanka said.
Personal attacks
Pinarayi Vijayan claimed a trend of personal attacks had been observed. “A trend of personal attacks is visible if you notice the election campaign of the last few days. LDF leaders and their family members are being targeted. This is another strategy. Congress even uses their national leaders for this. Those who don't have any idea about Kerala, its people and their problems, land here and repeat what the state leaders are saying,” Vijayan said.
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“The opposition cannot prove even a single allegation against this government. By making false allegations, they are ruining their own integrity. The popular wave in favour of the LDF across the state is a reflection of this. The elections surveys, too, are a reflection of this. This malicious campaign is a last-ditch attempt by those who failed in front of reality. It is learnt that they (opposition) are preparing a lot of weapons behind the screen. Fake messages, copies of forged documents etc... several such things are already doing the rounds. When will they understand that none of these can misdirect the people of Kerala?” Vijayan asked.
“The UDF, which is in an all-out effort to demolish the LDF with the help of Sangh Parivar and their agencies, will not have any role in Kerala politics after this election,” Vijayan added.
