'If it is Manipur today, it will be Kerala tomorrow': Catholic Bishop of Kerala's Thamarassery

Bishop Remigiose Inchananiyil of the Diocese of Thamarassery, Kerala, has described the Manipur strife as a script-based attack on a particular section of people. The culprits destroyed 200 churches in 48 hours and the silence of the people's representatives is frightening, the Catholic Bishop said, addressing a hunger protest in Calicut demanding restoration of peace in Manipur.

Calicut (Kerala) : Bishop Remigiose Inchananiyil, the head of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Eparchy of Thamarassery, has said that the ongoing Manipur violence is a scripted attack to wipe out a particular section of people and the same may happen in Kerala too in the near future. If it is Manipur today, it will be Kerala tomorrow, he said. He was speaking at the hunger protest led by Calicut MP M K Raghavan, in support of their demand for the restoration of peace in Manipur.

The Bishop of Thamarassery also asked all the parties and organisations to stand together to fight against the riots going on in the northeastern state. 'The attacks were scripted. Culprits destroyed more than 200 churches in 48 hours. The silence of the people's representatives on the issue is frightening,' the Bishop said.

Meanwhile, Malankara Orthodox Church's Arch Bishop Baselios Marthoma Mathews Catholic Bava had said last month that the central government should take immediate steps to end the riots in Manipur. He suggested that a strong military presence should be put in place to end the insurgency. He pointed out that the riots were also being seen as the persecution of the religious minorities and not just seen as the ethnic riots between two tribes.