Phones promised to us to attend meet: PwDs in Tamil Nadu
P Shenbagavalli, one of the petitioners, stated, 'The officials from the district revenue office asked us to attend a government event assuring us smartphones and a central government-sponsored scheme. We arrived at 8 am and were present till the end, but no phones were given to us. When we followed up, officials also used abusive language.'
Meanwhile, residents of Fathima Nagar near Palayamchettikulam opposed a proposal to open a TASMAC liquor outlet on Melakkulam Road, stating that the area is densely populated and has temples and schools nearby.
They also said that the area is prone to crimes like sexual harassment and chain snatching.
In another petition, village heads of Malayalamedu and Thenpathu, Kannan and Rajkumar, requested that the invitation for the Nellaiappar temple car festival include the names of their villages and claimed that their community has been performing for years in the car festival.
Subramanian, a petitioner, demanded that a public road near Krishnan Kovil in Ward 33 of Palayamkottai zone be reopened soon.
Police also detained a man named S Stephen from NGO colony after he was allegedly seen distributing Christian pamphlets near the collectorate. Hindu Munnani functionary Manikanda Mahadevan complained in this regard.
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India Today
an hour ago
- India Today
Why the arrest of two nuns in Chhattisgarh challenges BJP in Kerala
The July 25 arrest of two Kerala nuns on charges of forcible conversion and human trafficking in BJP-governed Chhattisgarh has snowballed into a major political controversy. On July 29, a delegation of United Democratic Front (UDF) MPs from Kerala met the nuns in jail. Another delegation of MPs of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF), along with CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat, had reached Durg but was denied permission to meet nuns, Vandana Francis and Preeti Mary, are originally from Kerala. Mary is a native of Elavoor village near Angamaly in Ernakulam district whereas Francis is from Udayagiri in Kannur district. They were arrested from Durg railway station following accusations made by Bajrang Dal activists. A tribal youth accompanying the nuns was thrashed by the activists. Besides, there were three tribal girls from Narayanpur with the nuns; the Bajrang Dal claimed the trio was being forcibly taken the incident acquiring national limelight, Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai issued a statement. Sai, incidentally a product of missionary education himself, said the tribal girls were being deceitfully taken out of Chhattisgarh under the pretext of nursing training. He said the law would take its statement, ironically, did not find support from the BJP unit in Kerala, where the party has been proactively wooing the 19 per cent Christian electorate. BJP Kerala president Rajeev Chandrasekhar said he did not believe the nuns were involved in illegalities while state general secretary Anoop Antony was already in Chhattisgarh to attempt the release of the nuns. Chandrasekhar criticised the Bajrang Dal and said anyone who takes the law into their own hands should be made to face it. The UDF delegation that visited Durg jail comprised MPs K. Francis George, Benny Behanan, Saptagiri Ulaka and N.K. Premchandran; joining them were Congress minorities cell leaders and Chhattisgarh leaders Arun Vohra and Tamradhwaj Sahu. In Delhi, outside Parliament on July 28, protesting MPs accused the BJP government in Chhattisgarh of targeting really happened on July 25? The nuns, accompanied by tribal girls Kamleshwari, Sukhmati and Lalita and a tribal youth, were at Durg railway station. The girls were apparently being taken to Agra for training. A group of Bajrang Dal activists arrived at the railway station and created a ruckus. The nuns were taken to the Government Railway Police (GRP) police station where Bajrang Dal office-bearer Jyoti Sharma allegedly threatened them with dire claimed the girls, residents of Orcha in Narayanpur district, had gone to Narayanpur town where they were abducted, and that their parents were also approaching the police in Narayanpur. On the contrary, though, the mother of one of the girls, Kamleshwari, told the local police her daughter had gone with the nuns for work out of her free Kerala, the arrests are reverberating socio-politically. The Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), the apex body of Catholic Church leaders in the country, expressed shock. 'It's a humiliating incident for Catholics in the country. The nuns who went to Chhattisgarh with valid documents to employ three women in a Catholic-run hospital were sent to jail and charged with forceful religious conversion and human trafficking. We do not indulge in conversions of any manner. It seems the constitutional guarantee of minority rights has no relevance in the BJP-ruled state,' Mar Andrews Thazhath, the archbishop of Thrissur and CBCI president, told INDIA anger on the ground is palpable. As Felix J. Pulluden, a lay Catholic leader in Ernakulam, put it, 'BJP governments in the states and at the Centre are pursuing their anti-minority agenda. Church leaders sold the Christian community to the BJP and are now raising the pitch over the arrests of the nuns.'With both the ruling CPI(M) and Congress-led Opposition pledging solidarity with the nuns, the state BJP finds itself in a quandary. With an imposing assembly election next year, the party faces the risk of erosion of the Christian community's trust, thought to have been carefully gained over the past few years through a series of outreach initiatives led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi BJP's Lok Sabha election victory from Thrissur last year was partly credited to the support of Christians. Incidentally, archbishop Thazhath had supported the BJP candidate Suresh Gopi. A litmus test now lies ahead: local body polls in Kerala expected to be held in December. Next up: assembly polls, in which the party aspires to win up to 50 seats and have a formidable presence in the 140-member legislative to India Today Magazine- Ends
The Print
an hour ago
- The Print
Arrest of two Catholic nuns in Chhattisgarh causes ripples in Kerala. BJP leaders tread cautiously
Sister Preethi Mary, 45, and Sister Vandana Francis, 50, were arrested at Durg railway station on 25 July, along with a third person, Sukaman Mandavi, following a complaint by a local Bajrang Dal activist. The incident, condemned by church leaders and major political fronts, has cast a shadow over the party's sustained efforts to woo the minority community and expand its presence in Kerala. Thiruvananthapuram: The arrest of two Malayalee Catholic nuns in the BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh on charges of forced religious conversion and human trafficking has snowballed into a political storm in poll-bound Kerala, pushing the BJP's electoral ambitions onto the back foot. The complaint alleged that they were forcibly converting three girls from Bastar's Narayanpur. Preethi is from the Elavoor parish at Angamaly in Ernakulam, and Vandana Francis belongs to the Udayagiri parish at Thalassery in Kannur. Both are associated with the Assisi Sisters of Mary Immaculate (ASMI) order. The charges against them include human trafficking under Section 143 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and forced religious conversion under Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Religious Freedom Act. Father Michael Pulickal of the Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council (KCBC) told ThePrint the arrest was based on 'false and baseless' allegations of religious conversion and trafficking made by Bajrang Dal members. He added that both the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI) and the KCBC have sought the prime minister's intervention in the matter. 'Forced conversion is not the Catholic Church's agenda. Even when people approach us for conversion, we follow a long and detailed process. This is just an allegation. The girls are over 18 and adults, so if they're traveling in public transport, how can it be human trafficking?' he asked. The priest said the issue stemmed from deep-rooted communal prejudice, as the girls were simply traveling with Christian nuns. Kerala-based political analyst C.R. Neelankandan said the incident will likely harm the BJP's image in the state. 'Only in Kerala does the Christian community welcome the BJP. Outside, it's a different story. Even the church here remained silent during similar incidents in other parts of the country. But that won't continue now,' he said. Political turn However, the issue took a political turn as the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) highlighted the attacks against the minorities in BJP-ruled states. On Tuesday, LDF MPs including senior CPI(M) leader K. Radhakrishnan, Rajya Sabha members A.A. Rahim, P.P. Suneer, and Jose K. Mani left Delhi for Chhattisgarh. They were accompanied by CPI(M) Politburo member Brinda Karat and CPI national leader Annie Raja. From the UDF, legislators Roji M. John, Saji Joseph, N.K. Premachandran, Benny Behanan and Francis George are also visiting the state. In Kerala, Tourism and PWD Minister P.A. Muhammed Riyas said on Tuesday called for a nationwide protest, saying the Constitution has been 'jailed' under the Narendra Modi government. 'Since the Modi government came to power, attacks against Christians and religious minorities have intensified. The country is seeing anti-human policies like never before. Poverty, unemployment, and inflation have risen,' he said. 'To distract from this, hatred is being injected, and communalism implemented. It is Modi and the BJP who are pushing this. Fear is being spread. In reality, the prime minister is not Narendra Modi. It is Narendra Fear. Narendra Fear is ruling India today.' Also Read: A Malayalee from Gujarat is shaking up Kerala BJP. Rajeev Chandrasekhar's un-Sangh poll campaign Impact on BJP's outreach in poll-bound Kerala The incident comes as the southern state is headed for crucial local body polls and Assembly elections, putting the BJP on the back foot. The BJP has made concerted efforts to engage the Christian community through state and central leaders visiting church heads frequently, launching its Sneha Yatra outreach programme during festivals like Christmas and Easter since 2023, and appointing Christian leaders to key positions, including George Kurian's recent induction as a minister of state in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in 2024. On 12 July, the BJP revamped its leadership under the new party chief, Rajeev Chandrasekhar. It appointed three Christians–Shone George, Anoop Antony Joseph and Jiji Joseph–to its state committee. According to the 2011 Census, Hindus account for 54.73 percent of Kerala's population, followed by 26.56 percent Muslims and 18.38 percent Christians. With the Hindu vote bank split among all the political fronts, the support of the minority community, which holds significant cultural and political sway, is necessary for the BJP to make inroads in the state. BJP's Shone George told ThePrint the incident would not impact the party's prospects in Kerala. 'We can't control every organisation. These incidents will happen. What we're trying to do is rescue them. This might affect us negatively in the short term. But at the end of the day, we'll be able to show the public and the community what we've done,' he said. He added that interference by the LDF and the UDF would only negatively affect the case. The party also sent a delegation, led by its general secretary Anoop Antony, to Chhattisgarh on Tuesday. The group met with Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai and Deputy CM and Home Minister Vijay Sharma. Following the meeting, Anoop said the government and the chief minister assured them that they are 'committed to helping the Christian community' and expressed optimism that a solution would soon be found. 'These matters are being seriously discussed, and further legal action will follow,' he said. Anoop added that the incident began when one of the girls showed signs of distress while accompanied by a young man, before the nuns arrived. He claimed the situation was later politicised in the state for electoral gains. 'Let me say, north India is a vast world. Different people, cultures, laws… many things. Often, the sensitivity of such matters is not easily understood by those in Kerala. But from the beginning, Rajeev and the BJP's team have intervened and done everything necessary,' he said. 'We are not seeing this as a political issue. As said earlier, if someone from anywhere in the world is in trouble, Modi ji's politics is to go and rescue them.' Notably, the Catholic Church has recently spoken out against what it called the BJP's 'double standards' on Christian persecution in the nation. An editorial published in Deepika, the Catholic Church's official mouthpiece, on 14 July highlighted the growing number of attacks against Christians across India. Titled 'Applauding the hunter while patting the prey?', it called the BJP's approach 'deeply humiliating' and alleged that while the party presents itself as an ally to Christians in states like Goa and Kerala, it allows persecution of the community in northern states. 'We are not political. As far as the church is concerned, we don't interfere in personal political preferences as long as they align with our beliefs and moral values. All parties approach us because we are a community, and we don't distance anyone. But we do oppose divisive political forces,' Father Michael said. (Edited by Sugita Katyal) Also Read: Malayalam rap's provocateur, Vedan's battle with the system, his art & a #MeToo past
New Indian Express
an hour ago
- New Indian Express
'Will decide accordingly': Kerala Catholic body warns BJP that 'friendship' will depend on progress in nuns' case
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A powerful body of senior Catholic clergy in Kerala on Wednesday indirectly cautioned the BJP that any prospective friendship would depend on securing justice for two nuns from the state jailed in Chhattisgarh over alleged conversion and human trafficking. Addressing reporters here, Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council (KCBC) president, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, said the incident would be a determining factor in the Church's political stance. "If no justice is done, then what friendship can there be? How can we speak of perfect brotherhood?" the Cardinal asked, expressing displeasure over the denial of bail to the two nuns, who were arrested following complaints made by Bajrang Dal members. "The nuns are yet to get bail. This will be a criterion. Naturally, we will observe developments and decide accordingly," he said. Cleemis questioned the "sincerity of outreach efforts" when justice was being denied to the nuns. "Everyone should act on what they preach and show sincerity. This is what we expect," he said, responding to questions about the BJP's attempts to engage with the Christian community in the state.
