Christians in India welcomed the nomination of Margaret Alva, a Catholic, to the post of the country’s vice president in the coming August 6 elections.
A former governor and union minister, Alva “believes steadfastly in the values and ideals of our Constitution and will fight hard to protect these values,” tweeted Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of the political opposition.
Xavier Peedikakkupurath, a retired teacher of St Columba’s School, welcomed the move. He described Alva as “simple, unassuming and approachable.”
“I remember, she would come for the parent-teacher meeting like anybody else without any security or paraphernalia and stand in the queue like others waiting for her turn,” said the teacher.
“It is a proud occasion for Christians that several opposition parties have nominated her as their candidate for vice president,” he said.
Alva has been a member of parliament for five five-year terms. She has served as governor of four states and a Union Minister holding different portfolios, including parliamentary affairs, youth and sports, women and child development.
She is the second Christian to contest the top constitutional post since the country became Independent 75 years ago.
Earlier in 2012, Purno A Sangma contested the presidential elections as a Bharatiya Janata Party candidate against the then-ruling party nominee Pranab Mukherjee.
In a media interview, Alva said she feels that uniting the opposition “is the most crucial thing at the moment.”
“If I can be an instrument in that process, I am glad. It’s not a question of winning or losing, it is a question of responding to a challenge before the nation,” added Alva.
Alva was born on April 14, 1942, in a Catholic family in Mangalore. Her father was a civil servant. She completed her graduation from Mount Carmel College, Bengaluru. Later, she obtained a law degree from the Government Law College, Bengaluru.
In 1964, she married Niranjan Thomas Alva, a lawyer-turned-businessman and became the daughter-in-law of Violet Alva and Joachim Alva, both former members of Parliament. They were the first couple to be in Parliament.
