In a shot in the arm for the BJP in Kerala, a Christian diocese has screened the controversial film 'The Kerala Story' for teenagers.
The Idukki diocese of the Syro Malabar church had screened the film as part of an awareness session for students in classes 10 to 12 last week.
Media commission head of the diocese Fr Jins KarakkaT told the media that the film was screened to give awareness to children against teenagers being lured by love and being misused. He also said that there have been instances of youths from the community falling into traps after being lured by love. Hence the awareness session for teenages was conducted and discussions on the matter were initiated.
The BJP has been strongly backing the film that narrates that scores of women from Kerala were being lured by men from a particular community by pretending love and were being forced to join terror outfits like the IS.
The ruling CPM and opposition Congress have been strongly opposing the film. The decision of Doordarshan to screen the film on Friday was also strongly objected by the CPM and Congress, including Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, alleging that the BJP government at the centre was misusing the national channel for their vested interests.
Reacting to the Idukki diocese screening the film, Congress and CPM reiterated their earlier position that they were opposed to the film as it was a baseless narrative aimed at creating communal divide.
BJP leaders welcomed the decision of the church to screen the film.
Since the BJP has been trying to make inroads into the Christian vote banks of Kerala by raising various issues including 'love jihad', the Idukki diocese's decision to screen the film is a shot in the arm for the saffron party especially since the Lok Sabha polls are approaching.
(Published 08 April 2024, 10:19 IST)
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