BJP not against Christian or any religion: Bernard

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaFebruary 9, 2023

BJP leader and Tura MDC Bernard N Marak on Thursday said the party is not against Christian or any religion but is against corruption like a true Christian should be.

In a statement, Marak said that Meghalaya is a Christian state and all our candidates are by and large Christians or pro Christians.

“Does it mean that any of these candidates are anti-christian or less Christian? If BJP candidates win elections, it is a boon to Christianity and BJP MLAs will always be at the frontline to protect, preserve and flag the issues of Christians before the Centre should the need arise,” he said.

He said that the manifesto of BJP gives equal opportunities to all sections of the society namely caste, creed, religion, culture and tribes. It is under this foundation that the party has been able to reach out to every person, every voter, every common man within the community.

He said, the programmes and objectives of the BJP Government in Delhi are designed to cater to all the citizens of the country, citizens of the state, urban and rural irrespective of their caste, creed or community.

In this regard, the BJP Government has been able to attain success in all fronts and with all programmes especially the welfare programmes for the poor and the backward communities.

With this background, there is no scope to deviate from its goal and objective which has been enlisted in the manifesto and the whole approach is to ensure development reaches out to all.

Coming to the issue of an allegation that BJP is anti-Christian, Marak said there is no substance to allege the BJP on this ground.

He said one example can be illustrated, where we have a BJP run government in Nagaland where the state is dominated by Christians.

“There is nowhere to be seen or confrontations experienced by the people of Nagaland when the government is a BJP run government. It shows that the party does not interfere in the lifestyles, culture which includes food habits of the people of Nagaland,” the BJP leader said.

“In fact,  the government of India has extended lots of projects through the Ministry of Minority Affairs to strengthen local infrastructure and traditional establishments in the state. In our own state Meghalaya, BJP as a party is a coalition partner of the MDA government,” he added.

According to him, it is through the BJP functionaries in the state which is part of the government that has helped the state to receive various projects from the centre. These projects and schemes have been distributed fairly without any bias. Never have beneficiaries been asked about their religion while receiving benefits from schemes.

“Moreover, we have all experienced that while we are part of the government the party has worked hand in hand with the local and traditional institutions, all faith organisations to strengthen the needs whenever there is a need to do so,” he said while adding that There is nothing to show on record whether in public domain, media or church congregations where they had expressed reservations to BJP.