South Connect: Kerala Church Bishop Promises Catholic Votes For BJP, Sparks Controversy | Karnataka

The Bharatiya Janata party which is trying to make inroads in Kerala, this week received support from an unlikely quarter. A bishop in Kerala promised catholic votes to the BJP. This however has led to major controversy in the state. Joseph Pamplany, the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of (Thalassery) said that there was no need to keep the ruling party of the country away from the church. He was Addressing a meeting of the Catholic farmers’ conference in the north Kerala town. “The church has no aversion or untouchable attitude towards the BJP. After all, it is ruling party of the country. If the framers’ problems are addressed, we will vote for BJP,” he said. Natural rubber is priced between ₹130 and ₹150 now and he wanted to Centre to hike it to ₹300 a kilogram. “If the Union government raises the price of rubber, the church will naturally help the BJP to elect a member of parliament from the state,” the Bishop said. The church usually does not support any party, but it will support any Union or state government that will stand with farmers, he said, adding there is no need to misinterpret it as an alliance between the church and the BJP. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices