Kerala Bishops call on PM Modi, No specific discussion of Chhattisgarh issue, says BJP

The meeting took place a day after Syro Malabar Church flayed boards placed at some villages in BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh banning entry of pastors and converted Christians.

Thiruvananthapuram: A delegation of Christian bishops from Kerala called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi on Tuesday.

BJP Kerala president Rajeev Chandrasekhar, who accompanied the senior bishops, said that the meeting did not discuss any specific issues like the attack on nuns in Chhattisgarh, but only discussed minority rights issues.

"I will be always at your service," the Prime Minister told the bishops, said Chandrasekhar.

The meeting took place a day after the Kerala-based Syro Malabar Church had strongly flayed the boards placed at some villages in BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh banning entry of pastors and converted Christians.

Even as there were reports that the bishops would be conveying their concerns over the attacks on the community members at various places, Chandrasekhar said that the discussions were over the micro minority rights. "There was no specific discussion on matters like the attack on nuns in Chhattisgarh. The PM assured the bishops that the government was always open to help them," Chandrasekhar said.

Syro-Malabar church head Major Archbishop Mar Raphael Thattil and Archbishop Mar Kuriakose Bharanikulangara of the Faridabad Archdiocese led the delegation of bishops. They were yet to respond about the meeting. They were learnt to have submitted a representation to the Prime Minister raising various issues and requesting the government to invite Pope Leo XIV to India.

Chandrasekhar said that the meeting should not be considered as any political move. It was only part of BJP's public service, he said.