New Delhi: After Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC)’s warning to people in the state against “invasion” of Hindutva forces, Union minister KirenRijiju has appealed to the people to keep politics and religion separate. 

Rijiju, who is also in charge of BJP’s election affairs in Nagaland, was at Mon town in Nagaland to launch the campaign for the BJP-National Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) alliance.

“Politics was for fulfilling human physical wants and needs of people through developmental activities and religion lies in one’s soul and mind for internal peace. So I urge all people not to mix religion with politics,” the BJP leader said. 

Rijiju steered clear of a direct collision with the Church, influential in Christian-majority Nagaland, instead accusing Congress of trying to bring religion into politics.

“Congress has realised that they have lost ground in Nagaland and everywhere else. They do not have anything against BJP and so they are out to defame us by calling us anti-Christians. May I remind you that it was during the Congress regime when Christians were persecuted the most in the country,” Rijiju said.

Nagaland state BJP has also taken a guarded stance since the NBCC issued the open letter to Naga political leaders. Without attacking the Church, BJP has only tried to convince it by saying that it is a mature and responsible political party and it holds development and corruption-free governance as top priorities.