Are Chandrababu's comments on religious conversions and attacks on Hindu temples boomeranging? It appears Chandrababu's comments have not gone down well with the Christian leaders in the TDP. Already a former MLA has resigned from the party.
TDP's senior Anglo-Indian leader Philip Tocher has resigned from the party. Tocher was a nominated MLA during 2014-19 and has been with the party for a long time. He said given Chandrababu's comments against his religion, he can no longer remain in the party. There is shock and disbelief among the TDP Christians over Chandrababu chanting Jai Sri Ram at Rama Tirtham. They are also upset that he had directly attacked the Christians and blamed them for the spate of temple attacks in the state. The presidents of Christian Cells in all the 13 districts of the state have sent in their resignations to the party chief protesting against his comments. TDP state Christian Cell chief Praveen Kumar too expressed dissatisfaction over Chandrababu's comments.
Recently, the Christian leaders from the party held a key meeting in Guntur, where they discussed Chandrababu's comments. They reportedly took up the issue with the leadership. With this, Chandrababu has now become defensive and stopped talking about the temple attack issue any longer. It is clear that he is unable to take political advantage from the attacks on Hindu temples and is ending up losing the support of the Christians, who form a significant vote bank in AP.
TDP's senior Anglo-Indian leader Philip Tocher has resigned from the party. Tocher was a nominated MLA during 2014-19 and has been with the party for a long time. He said given Chandrababu's comments against his religion, he can no longer remain in the party. There is shock and disbelief among the TDP Christians over Chandrababu chanting Jai Sri Ram at Rama Tirtham. They are also upset that he had directly attacked the Christians and blamed them for the spate of temple attacks in the state. The presidents of Christian Cells in all the 13 districts of the state have sent in their resignations to the party chief protesting against his comments. TDP state Christian Cell chief Praveen Kumar too expressed dissatisfaction over Chandrababu's comments.
Recently, the Christian leaders from the party held a key meeting in Guntur, where they discussed Chandrababu's comments. They reportedly took up the issue with the leadership. With this, Chandrababu has now become defensive and stopped talking about the temple attack issue any longer. It is clear that he is unable to take political advantage from the attacks on Hindu temples and is ending up losing the support of the Christians, who form a significant vote bank in AP.