Kerala: BJP courts Christian voters ahead of local elections

For the local elections on 9 and 11 December, the party led by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has presented an unprecedented number of Christian candidates. The Syro-Malabar Church, after a meeting with the prime minister, has invited the faithful to collaborate in the electoral review, signalling a possible rapprochement.

Kochi (AsiaNews) - Local elections will be held in Kerala on 9 and 11 December, in a political climate marked by the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) growing courtship of the Christian community, historically distant from the Hindu nationalist party.

For the first time, in fact, the BJP is fielding a significant number of Christian candidates, claiming to have more than any other political party in the state, where Christians represent about 18% of the population and have traditionally supported regional parties or the Congress, the main opposition party led by Rahul Gandhi.

According to local leaders, the party has conducted preliminary surveys to identify constituencies where members of the Christian community can be nominated as candidates and has given precise instructions to district units. In Kottayam, for example, a district with a strong Christian presence, there are more than 100 Christian candidates on the BJP list, while in Thiruvananthapuram there are six.

Among them is Anju Jackson, a candidate in Poonthura: the daughter of a former member of the Kerala Congress (M), she converted to Christianity after her marriage. ‘I am a big fan of Modi,’ she said. ‘At first, my father did not support my choice, but now the whole family is rooting for me. Young people want development, and the BJP can guarantee it.’

In addition to its identity strategy, the BJP is targeting an issue that is particularly sensitive in the hilly areas of Kerala: the presence of wild animals that destroy crops, which has increased in 273 panchayats (rural administrative units). Some local Christian groups, especially in areas with high agricultural density, have openly expressed their support for the party, which is considered more assertive in calling for measures against animals.

‘Overall, between 25% and 30% of our candidates in various local bodies are Christians,’ explained Shaun George, vice-president of the BJP in Kerala. ‘Catholics here are not influenced by the anti-BJP narrative that is spread in northern India.’

The BJP's new openness towards the Christian electorate comes at a delicate moment in relations between the Church and the central government. In November, a delegation of bishops from the Syro-Malabar Church, led by Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil and including Archbishop Kuriakose Bharanikulangara, met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi.

According to Church sources, Modi pledged ‘full support’ for the concerns of the Church and the Christian community. The day after the meeting, the Syro-Malabar Church issued a circular encouraging the faithful to actively collaborate with the special revision process of the electoral rolls in the state, sparking speculation about a possible institutional rapprochement with the BJP.

The circular called on the faithful to assist election officials during door-to-door visits under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) programme, ensuring that all forms were filled out correctly.

Modi commented on the meeting on social media, saying he had a ‘wonderful interaction with the leaders of the Syro-Malabar Church’.

Kerala is one of the last bastions where the BJP has never managed to gain real institutional representation due to the large Christian presence, which is traditionally wary of Hindu nationalism. However, the party's current strategy seems to want to break this pattern for the first time.

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