Kerala priest who joined BJP removed from church positions

Kerala priest Fr Shaiju Kurien of the prominent Orthodox Church, who joined Bharatiya Janata Party with around 50 Christian families, has been temporarily removed from his positions in the diocese pending an inquiry, authorities said on Friday.

Kurien was serving as the secretary of the Orthodox Church Nilakkal bhadrasanam (diocese) in Pathanamthitta district and as vice president of Nilakkal Bhadrasanam Sunday school.

The BJP, which has been wooing the Christian community in Kerala for some time, had announced on December 31 that Fr Kurien and around 50 families from the minority community joined the party in the state.

According to a statement issued by the Nilakkal bhadrasanam on Friday, the decision to temporarily remove the priest from all current church positions, pending an inquiry, was taken by the diocese council convened January 4.

However, the public relations officer's statement did not specify the reason for the action against him.

As per the statement, the council decided to request Catholica Bava, the supreme head of the Malankara Orthodox Church, to appoint an inquiry commission to probe the complaint received against Fr Kurien. It has been decided to complete the investigation within two months, it said.

A new priest would be appointed as the vice president of the Nilakkal Bhadrasanam Sunday school, it added.

On December 31, the BJP had announced through a Facebook post that Fr Shaiju Kurien and around 50 Christian families joined the party in the presence of Union Minister V Muraleedharan.

The BJP has said that many people from the Kerala Congress (Jacob) faction also joined the party in the presence of state president K Surendran in Thrissur district last Saturday.

The party attributed this trend of minorities joining its ranks to the visionary approach of development of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.

The development came shortly after BJP resumed its 'Sneha Yatra,' an outreach programme aimed at connecting with the Christian community in the state.