The Latin Catholic Church’s aggressive positions in the aftermath of the Ockhi cyclone disaster, expressing dissatisfaction with the search, rescue and relief work jointly carried out by the Union and State governments, have caught Kerala’s political establishment off guard.
After the cyclone, agitations were witnessed across the coastal belt in the southern districts, which have taken the brunt of the impact, in terms of loss of lives and livelihood, apart from coastal erosion.
Widespread resentment
The agitations included blockades of national highways and railway tracks, with agitators openly expressing their resentment against Ministers, deputed to oversee the search, rescue and relief operations.
The Latin Catholic Church has also called for a Raj Bhavan march on Monday, led by Archbishop Soosa Pakiam M., to protest against the “inadequate compensation package” announced by the State government and the failure of the State and Central governments locating the missing fish workers.
On Sunday, the Church urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the cyclone-hit areas to assess the situation.
The request came soon after BJP State president Kummanam Rajasekharan called on the Archbishop.
It is perhaps for the first time that the Church has gone on an offensive, with priests giving leadership to agitations, which witnessed emotional scenes. The aggressive position of the Church has made matters a bit difficult for the ruling Left Democratic Front. Considering the fact that the Latin Catholic Church has always been sympathetic to the Left parties, the State government has handled the issue with equanimity, despite a few Ministers facing taunts from the fishing community while the rescue and relief operations were on.
The Cabinet announced a compensation package, besides agreeing to consider some of the suggestions that came up at an all-party meeting held the other day.