Indian Christians can hope from these elections

The political scenario is becoming more complicated day by day. The old alliances are breaking up. Every party wants to go alone to face the electorate, hoping to gain and be in a better bargaining position to make alliances for the future government. New regional parties are appearing, moved by the desire to acquire statehood or by the need to resolve regional problems. Most probably the two national parties, Congress and BJP will suffer a loss. There is a lot of talks about a third front, around the communist party and Dalit parties, hopeful to put up a government without the Congress and BJP, but among them there are too many self proclaimed candidates for prime minister. The real battle will be in the second half of May, when the results will be known and the leaders will start working out coalitions, promising ministerial berths right and left. One survey published on The Times of India said that the Congress will emerge as the single largest party with 144 seats, but will find the BJP just a step behind with 137. If the Congress will be able to convince the present allies it will get 257 seats but it will fall still short of the required majority of 272 in a house of 543 members. Will the Christian community gain from the present election? The question is particularly relevant in places where they suffered persecution in the recent past like in Orissa.

Two events may have some bearing on this question.
First the chief minister of Orissa, Naveen Patnaik, with his party, had broken away from the BJP. Second the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) has a new leader in Mohan Madhukar Bhagwat. The first event was greeted with great enthusiasm by the Archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, Raphael Cheenath. He said that the church is happy to see Orissa’s ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) parts ways with ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Violence against Christians in Orissa by Hindu rightwing activists last year, particularly in Kandhamal district, is believed to be one of the reasons behind the collapse of the BJD-BJP alliance in the state. “The Kandhamal incident may be one of the reasons for breaking the alliance” Cheenath acknowledged. Communist Party of India-Marxist general Secretary, Praksh Karat, has said his party leaders met Orissa Chief Minister and BJD chief, Naveen Patnaik, following the attack on Christians by rightwing Hindu groups and told him that “it is untenable for him to continue with the BJP”.

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