A vicar of a church in Thrissur has filed a complaint against supporters of BJP candidate Suresh Gopi who allegedly culled out a video clip from a long
conversation to make it appear like the priest was appealing for votes for the actor-turned-politician contesting from the seat.

Father Paul Thekkanath, the vicar of the church part of the Prajyoti Niketan College in Puthukkad, Thrissur, lodged a complaint with the local police station alleging misuse of his speech made on December 2 when the BJP leader had visited the
institution as part of an outreach programme.

In the video clip, the clergyman was heard saying: “Only when we run together can we achieve victory. So, if we run along with Suresh Gopi sir we can achieve that.”

Over the last two days, BJP workers have been sharing the video clip on social media to make it look like the vicar was appealing to Christians to vote for Gopi.

Gopi has had a discussion at the college under his “SG Coffee Times” public contact programme in anticipation of getting a BJP ticket from Thrissur. During a long conversation with Gopi, the vicar had spoken the lines but they were in a different context.

Minorities form 41.3 per cent of the 14.83 lakh voters in Thrissur with the Christian community share being more than 50 per cent.

The BJP in Kerala has been “luring” the Christians as the party does not hope to get the support of Kerala Muslims.

Gopi’s “SG Coffee Times” at the Catholic college was part of such an initiative to reach out to Christian voters, without whom the BJP can never hope to open its account in Kerala that has consistently rejected the party.