Author: TNN
Publication: The Times of India
Date: February 12, 2008
URL: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2774999.cms
Always eager to offer sops to minorities,
the Andhra Pradesh government of chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy on Monday
decided to dole out subsidies, on the lines of the Haj scheme, for Christians
who want to visit holy sites in Israel.
Governor N D Tiwari in his address to the
joint budget session of the Assembly and Council said, "My government
has decided to extend the Haj pilgrim scheme to Christian minorities also
for their religious visits to Christian Holy Lands in Israel."
The sop to Christian pilgrims by the chief
minister, himself a Christian, is seen as another move by the Congress government
to woo minorities ahead of the general and assembly elections scheduled for
early next year.
"Unlike the Haj, which is a protected
environment and which sees thousands of pilgrims from all over the world every
year, holy sites in Israel including disputed Jerusalem, are located in a
virtual war zone and it is unlikely that more than a few Christians from India
and the state will want to visit," said an opposition leader. Christians
comprise about 1.5% of AP's eight crore population.