Thiruvananthapuram: Amidst its Christian outreach efforts in Kerala, the BJP seems to be making use of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent Lakshadweep visit to earn brownie points with the Muslim community.
Video footage of Modi's interaction with people of Lakshadweep, especially Malayalam-speaking Muslim women, are being circulated on social media by BJP activists and supporters in Kerala.
This apart, social media posts by noted personalities of Lakshadweep hailing Modi's efforts to boost Lakshadweep are also being pointed out by BJP workers to reject concerns that the Praful Khoda Patel administration was initiating reforms that affect the people of Muslim-dominated region.
Many prominent personalities and celebrities from Kerala had also backed the 'Save Lakshadweep' social media campaign in 2021 against the reforms of the Patel administration.
BJP national vice president A P Abdullakutty told DH that the Prime Minister's visit and the development initiatives being made by the BJP at Lakshadweep had helped in exposing the false campaigns being carried out by the Congress and CPM over Lakshadweep.
Even when BJP cadres are sharing video footage of Modi's cordial interaction with Muslim women in Lakshadweep, Minority Morcha Kerala president Jiji Joseph said that it was not aimed at getting any political advantage but only to counter the misleading campaigns against the party.
Though the BJP has been carrying out various Christian outreach initiatives in Kerala like visiting Chrisitian families during Christmas, no such initiatives targeting the Muslim community were being taken even as Muslim's constitute 27 percent of Kerala's population and Christians are only 18 percent.
A jamaat leader in Thiruvananthapuram said that cosmetic initiatives by the BJP would not help in addressing a general concern among the minority communities over BJP's Hindutva agenda.
Published 10 January 2024, 15:54 IST