BJP leader reacts as church screens ’The Kerala Story’ amid backlash

Mangalore Today News Network

Idukki, April 08, 2024: A BJP leader on Monday praised the screening of "The Kerala Story" at a church in Kerala, saying that the controversial film is "getting more and more support" in the state despite an ongoing row over Doordarshan’s decision to telecast it.

 

The film was screened on Sunday at the church run by the Idukki Diocese as part of a faith festival for Catechism students in classes 10, 11 and 12. The church also issued a booklet on "love" highlighting the threats of ’love jihad’.

’Love jihad’ is a phrase popularised by Hindutva organisations to denote the relationship between a Muslim man and a non-Muslim woman where the Muslim partner wishes to convert the non-Muslim.

Speaking to reporters, state BJP chief K Surendran said that people in Kerala, including panchayats and local municipal bodies, have "wholeheartedly welcomed the film, which follows the story of a Hindu woman from the state brainwashed to embrace Islam and sent to Syria, where she is forced to join the Islamic State terrorist group.

"People have watched the film together because this is a real issue. Love jihad in Kerala has occurred many times and many districts, including Kannur. There are more than hundreds of victims and cases in Kerala," he said.

Surendran, the BJP candidate from the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, claimed that Kerala’s ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) are against "The Kerala Story".

"They (LDF and UDF) are against freedom of expression and doing votebank politics. But people in Kerala are wholeheartedly welcoming this movie."

"The Kerala Story" was screened at the Idukki Diocese church to create awareness among students and issues related to love and relationships were also discussed during the session.

The Archdiocese said that no communal references were made during the discussions.

The latest development surrounding the controversial film came just days after Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan criticised Doordarshan’s decision to telecast "The Kerala Story" in the state, saying the broadcaster should not be allowed to become a "propaganda machine" of the BJP and RSS.

He said Doordarshan should immediately withdraw its decision to screen the film, which was made with the aim of "spreading hatred" against Kerala.

The CPI(M) also said that "a public sector media organisation like Doordarshan should not cooperate with BJP’s attempt to create division by sowing the seeds of religious communalism in Kerala, where different religious groups live in harmony".

It called the decision a "challenge against Kerala".

Last year, the Kerala High Court refused to pause the release of the film, stating that the trailer did not contain anything offensive to any particular community as a whole.

The trailer was challenged before the court after it received widespread backlash for "falsely" claiming that 32,000 women from Kerala were converted and radicalised and deployed in terror missions both in India and abroad.

Courtesy: India Today