Kochi: The land dispute between Syro Malabar Church and the Waqf Board here is heading towards a major political churning with BJP backing the Church leaving the Congress and Left fronts in a catch 22 situation, media reports said.
The Congress and the CPM-led fronts have been winning assembly and Parliament polls from the region for the last several decades.
But, they have never tried to solve the problems of people living here.
With the BJP extending its support to the movement seeking a permanent solution to the problem, the political affiliations are likely to change in the future.
The Left and the I.N.D.I.A led by the Congress have opposed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, presented by the BJP led government.
The saffron party leader Shaun George described the Wakf Board’s claim over 400 acres of land inhabited by 600 families for three generations as illegal.
George said his party is supporting the Munambam Bhu Samrakshana Samithi movement by the affected families to protect their land.
The BJP leaders also welcomed the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council stand supporting the Waqf Board Bill amendment in Parliament. George, Minority Morcha State secretary Denni Jose Veliath and BJP district general secretary Jaison had met the State BJP leadership before taking a stand on the issue.
Hundreds of people from Munambam – Kadappuram area in Pallippuram panchayat of Vypeen had gathered near Kerala High Court to raise their concern over the issue on Friday.
The protest was organised under the aegis of Kerala Region Latin Catholic Council (KRLCC) on Friday.
The objective of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, is to amend the Wakf Act, 1995, to redress the issues and challenges in regulating and managing Waqf properties.
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