The induction of former civil servant Alphons Kannanthanam into the Union Ministry has triggered debates in Kerala’s political circles over whether this can lead to a considerable contribution from the State to the Mission 350-Plus plan conceived by the top BJP leadership for the next lok Sabha election.
Though observers differ in their opinions on this, there seems to be a general agreement that Kannanthanam’s induction is a caress from the Centre for Kerala keeping the next general election in mind and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP president Amit Shah could be considering Kannanthanam as the key to the State’s Christian vote base.
The State BJP leadership also seems to share this view. “One of the main points of the Congress’s campaign in Kerala against the BJP has always been that the party and the Modi Government are enemies of minorities. This argument has become irrelevant With Kannanthanam’s induction,” says former State BJP chief V Muraleedharan.
However, it is yet to be seen whether Kannanthanam’s appointment will actually help the BJP to make electoral inroads into the community of Christians, who constitute over 19 percent of the State’s population. When a question regarding this was put to him by newsmen, Kannanthanam’s reply was, “Christians also are part of India and we should take them along with us.”
The BJP leadership is of the view that the Christian community in the State, where the party’s vote-share had stood at 15 percent in last polls, does not have any particular dislike for the party or the NDA led by it. They recall the positive responses from several church heads when Modi became Prime Minister. Also, the Goa experience is adding to their confidence.
But there are observers who tend to disagree with this argument. “We should remember that an influential Christian leader, PC Thomas who is part of the NDA even now, was there in the former AB Vajpayee government but that had not helped the BJP or NDA much in the efforts to make inroads into the Christian vote-base,” said a senior journalist.
At the same time, even the BJP leaders in the State are said to be a bit surprised over the selection of Kannanthanam, a former CPI(M)-sponsored left Independent MlA from Kanjirappally in his home district, Kottayam. A top State BJP leader tried to play this point down by saying, “Selecting ministers is the prerogative of the Prime Minister.”
Meanwhile, entire Kerala welcomed the induction of Kannanthanam, a 1979 batch IAS officer of Kerala cadre who had made his mark in whichever sector he had functioned, into the Union Ministry as a great development that could help the State in taking up its developmental and other issues with the Centre.
Congratulating Kannanthanam on his new assignment, Marxist Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said, “This has come as an Onam gift for Kannanthanam, a long-term friend. I think this would give him the energy needed to work more for Kerala. I hope he will be Kerala’s voice in the Central Ministry even when he is dealing with national issues as a Union Minister.”
Before being sworn in as Minister, Kannanthanam himself told the media on Sunday morning, “To get a Union Minister representing Kerala is a big approval for the State. As far as I am concerned, this is an opportunity to do small but great things for Kerala and India. My challenge here is to be a good human being who considers others as good human beings.”
“All of us here are very happy about his new assignment,” said Kannanthanam’s mother Brigit at their house in Manimala, his native village. “I am praying that he should be able to do good things for the people and country,” she said. His brother Binu Kannanthanam said he had full confidence in Alphons, known for his ability to achieve success in whatever he did.