Election gamesmanship pulls church into politics

Shillong

: The war of words between BJP and Congress over the Centre’s tourism package for Meghalaya has drawn the

church

into the political ring in the election-bound state.

On Wednesday, a day after Congress president Rahul Gandhi came down heavily on BJP for ‘offering money to churches’ and trying to ‘buy’ political support, the saffron party demanded an apology. “Rahul should apologize or withdraw his statement. It sends a wrong message to the people of Meghalaya,” president of the state unit of BJP, Shibun Lyngdoh, said on Wednesday. It was the Congress president instead, he added, who had made it sound like the church was a ‘commodity that can be bought.’

The contentious tourism package that started it all was announced in the first week of January. With a Rs 70-crore package, Union tourism minister KJ Alphons – who is also BJP’s election incharge for Meghalaya – said places of religious worship in the state would be given a facelift under the Swadesh Darshan scheme. Of this, Rs 61.38 crore was planned for infrastructure development in 37 churches and the rest earmarked for development projects for 11 other religious groups.

When the package was announced, two churches – the Mawkhar Presbyterian Church and the Cathedral of Mary Help of Christians – had rejected it, saying that they had never asked for funds from the Centre. “We don’t endorse or oppose political parties, we advise people on how to vote and encourage them to exercise their democratic right,” said Reverend P Hynliawta, administrative secretary of the Mawkhar Presbyterian Church. “This time, we are worried about the policies of the government at the Centre, especially about food habits. Their education policy is also disturbing. And they want to introduce here what they are doing elsewhere. That is what we resist,” he added.

The Congress president, who had a breakfast meeting with leaders from various faiths and communities here on Wednesday, said there is an overwhelming feeling of ‘assault’ in the state. “This sense of assault is because BJP and RSS want to impose one idea and one perspective for the entire nation. The idea of diversity is being crushed. Congress wants the northeast to remain the open-minded, diverse region it is,” he said.

In the Christian-majority state, the lives of a large section revolve around the church. Tapping into that would yield significant political dividends. “To a large extent, the church stays away from politics,” Archie Kharpuri, secretary of All Saint’s Cathedral – one of the oldest churches of the city, said. He was among the leaders invited to the meeting with Rahul here. Officially, the church has no political stance, he gave a disclaimer. “But there is a fear. This is a tribal state. There are people who practise animism. RSS is trying to appropriate these indigenous faiths. For thousands of years, tribals have lived in peace. For the first time, there is a creeping sense of hostility. What BJP and RSS are doing is terrible. They are indoctrinating tribals for mere political gain,” he added.