New Delhi. Recently, the Congress took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his meeting with Pope Francis, which was heavily criticized. Seeing the uproar, the Congress came into action and the party later apologized to the Christian community and removed the controversial post on Pope Francis from its official social media handle. Let us tell you that the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee apologized unconditionally on Pope Francis, stating that if his previous post has caused “emotional or psychological pain” to Christians, then he deeply regrets it. The party clarified that it has not been their tradition to disrespect any religion, religious leaders or symbols. He emphasized that no Congress worker would ever think of insulting the Pope, who is worshiped by Christians around the world.
Despite the apology, the Congress continued to attack Prime Minister Modi, accusing him of disrespecting the country’s devotees by portraying himself as a deity. It argued that BJP leaders, including state president K. Surendran, were turning Congress’ mockery of Modi’s political moves into an insult to the Pope. The Congress asserted that these leaders were attempting to portray Christians as lacking self-respect and spreading communal venom. It further challenged the BJP’s sincerity by pointing to its silence during incidents such as the burning of churches in Manipur and suggested that Modi and his allies should apologize unconditionally to Christians.
The controversy began when the KPCC posted a photo of PM Modi with Pope Francis during the G-7 summit, along with a sarcastic comment that suggested “the Pope has finally met God.” This drew a sharp reaction from the BJP, with state president Surendran accusing the Congress of posting objectionable content against national leaders and suggesting that their social media handles are managed by “radical Islamists or urban Naxals”.
Surendran criticised the post and questioned whether KC Venugopal, Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi supported such comments. Let us tell you that at the G-7 summit, Prime Minister Modi invited Pope Francis to visit India, expressing admiration for the Pope’s commitment to serving the people. The two leaders shared a warm embrace during a session on topics such as artificial intelligence, energy, Africa and the Mediterranean.