Cracks have developed in the relationship between the Congress in Kerala and the Catholic Church, which has stood with it in difficult times, over the UPA Government’s decision to implement some proposals of the K Kasturirangan committee for protection of the Western Ghats.
Though indications of such a prospect has been in the air for quite some time with the Church rejecting the assurance of Kerala’s Congress-led UDF Government over the issue, the confirmation of this came in the past two days following the war of words between Idukki’s Congress MP PT Thomas and Bishop Mar Mathew Anikkuzhikkattil.
“The Bishop seems to have certain secret agenda (with respect to the agitation against the Kasturirangan proposals)… He is directly intervening in politics. He had once said that Idukki could become another Kashmir,” Thomas said in response to the Bishop’s statement that the MP was not representing the interests of the settler farmers in Idukki.
The Idukki Bishop had the other day openly stated that neither the Catholic Church nor the farmers of Idukki would support Thomas if he was fielded as the candidate of the Congress in the next lok Sabha election. Thomas retorted to Mar Anikkuzhikkattil’s statement by saying that the Congress’s candidates were decided by the party and not by the Church.
For the time being, the Church seems to have succeeded in convincing the farmers of Idukki and other settler areas of Kerala that neither the UPA nor the UDF of Kerala wanted to protect the farmers’ interests. After the morning prayers on Monday, priests of the parish churches under the Idukki Diocese had asked the believers to come out of their houses to join the 48-hour siege.
What is troubling the Congress is the indication of a new bond developing between the Kerala Congress (M), third biggest party in the Congress-led ruling UDF, and the CPI(M)-led Opposition lDF ahead of the lok Sabha election. The Congress thinks that this new move has the indirect blessing of the Church, which has always been solidly behind the KC(M).
Sensing trouble, the Congress leadership in Idukki on Monday rushed to clarify that it had nothing to do with the standoff between Thomas and Mar Anikkuzhikkattil. leaders advised Thomas to take criticisms in a positive manner.