The All India Catholic Union (AICU), Asia’s oldest Laity organization, has expressed deep concern at the communal polarization that is peaking on the eve of the general elections in the country in April and May, AICU president Lancy D’Cunha and spokesman Dr John Dayal said in a statement on March 24. The statement was issued at the end of the working committee meeting at Varanasi.
As reported by mattersindia.com, The AICU leadership said many communities including Muslims and Dalits (formerly untouchables) are victims of targeted violence. Of particular concern is the sudden and sustained violence against the Christian community in the Jaunpur district of Uttar Pradesh, ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
The Catholic Union, which celebrates its centenary in September this year, noted the research data that shows the dismal socio-economic condition of the community, specially the lack of jobs for young people, and the plight of Dalit Christians and Tribals in most states of central India, stretching from Rajasthan and Gujarat in the West to Bengal and the tea gardens of Assam in the east. The AICU endorsed the Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral letter on the general elections. The AICU also does not make a preference for any party leaving it to the conscience and good sense of the electorate.
But for the general good of the country with its ancient plural cultural heritage and the joint participation of all communities in the freedom struggle, the Catholic Union wishes for political leaders who commit themselves to the service of the poorest of the poor, to communal harmony, and to a development system that creates more jobs, especially in rural areas as also for the urban poor and women. They should protect the environment without leaving it at the mercy of powerful corporate giants. The AICU wishes political parties and candidates to assure security for religious minorities, for Dalits, and Tribals. Women and the girl child remain the most vulnerable. The country cannot progress unless every one of them feels secure, D’Cunha said.
Source: www.mattersindia.com
