One-of-a-kind crusade is on in Gods own country When Marxists in Kerala invoke Christ,one could be pretty sure that the concerns,dear god,are more temporal than heavenly. An exhibition politically unequivocal in its title Marx is Right before the CPM State Congress begins in Thiruvananthapuram,had the usual suspects,from Marx to Che,and then there was the odd,perplexing one: an image of the Crucifixion. As the Congress bristled at this unexpected co-option,CPMs Pinarayi Vijayan displayed exemplary knowledge of the Gospels Didnt Jesus drive out usurers from the temple? and then flirted with liberation theology of Latin America as he said his party held Christ as the greatest campaigner for the liberation of the oppressed. Only if the proletariat knew what the Politburo was doing! A poster,meanwhile,was put by the Building Construction Workers Union: their take on Da Vincis The Last Supper has Obama with pointed ears in Christs place,Oommen Chandy in Judass seat and Sonia Gandhi in Johns,along a motley combination of Sarkozy,Modi and Advani The last supper of capitalists. There are many versions of Da Vincis mural,with everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Batman at the table,but this is no occasion to quibble. CM Chandy called it an act of blatant blasphemy; Vijayan disowned the poster before the cock crowed thrice and said the CPM had,in fact,ordered it removed. The politically astute could count two earthly reasons for the CPM making Christ a card-carrying member: the forthcoming by-election in Piravom where the Christian vote bank will be crucial,and,two,reduce the distance between the party and the laity. For the Congress,this is the perfect distraction from the growing faction fights and an opportunity to nail the CPM. In Kerala where the Congress held hands with the Catholic Church for the anti-Communist Vimochana Samaram in the late 1950s,this is one-of-a-kind crusade.
