Candidates turn to Pentecostal churches in Jalandhar

Jalandhar, May 22

With just eight days left for campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections, candidates of all political parties are making every attempt to pull in votes. Having toured to other religious places, including temples, gurdwaras, mosques, catholic churches and deras, the next stop of the candidates is Pentecostal churches, which have been proliferating in Jalandhar.

Since a majority of the followers of these churches are from the Dalit community and weaker sections, the candidates are trying their best to woo them.

BJP candidate Sushil Rinku is known to be close to Pastor Ankur Narula, who runs one of the biggest churches in the region at Khambra village. Narula prayed for him in front of the gathering as Rinku praised the Pastor for not converting the masses into Christianity and just aligning them with Jesus Christ for their healing. Pastor Ankur Narula is himself a khatri Hindu. Rinku also congratulated the church functionaries over the multiplying number of followers each year.

Likewise, Congress candidate Charanjit S Channi today visited Tajpur to pay obeisance at the church run by Pastor Bajinder Singh and seek his support for the upcoming elections. Bajinder is a Haryanvi Jatt and has a huge following. His church is at loggerheads with that of Narula over differences of opinion on several matters.

AAP candidate Pawan Tinu too recently visited Bishop House along with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to urge the priests for their support for the state government.

Pentecostal churches have been functioning just like deras of other religions and caste groups in Punjab. They, however, are luring the crowd by showing divine healing powers, which remains a controversial subject.