New York: Leading American and global human and civil rights activists have come together to reinforce the demand to designate India as a “country of particular concern” to prevent and combat ongoing persecution of its religious minorities.
The November 16 discussion was organized by the Indian American Muslim Council in collaboration with Hindus for Human Rights, Students Against Hindutva Ideology, Dalit Solidarity Forum, India Civil Watch International and International Christian Concern.
Anurima Bhargava, the vice-chair of United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), said that as an ally and as a friend of India, the United States “needs to take steps to make sure that India upholds the rights guaranteed to all of its citizens as enshrined in its own constitution.”
“We saw this process play out in Assam. Many Indian citizens had their citizenship questioned and challenged by local authorities who excluded them from the national register of citizens despite their families having lived in India for generations.”
“And for that reason,” she added, “We made the recommendation to the State Department of the United States that India should be designated as a ‘country of particular concern,’” based on the deterioration and concerns about new state policies of the Narendra Modi government on religious minorities.
Joanne Lin, National Director, Advocacy and Government Affairs, Amnesty International USA, spoke about Amnesty India being forced to shut down its operation in India in October 2020 after two years of relentless threats, intimidation, and harassment by the Indian government.

Sr Teslin Poovathanickal is proud of the wounds on her face. “Oh, they are my Ruby’s gift,” the 43-year-old member of the Preshitharam Sisters says as she runs her fingers over the marks.
Ruby, a 26-year-old woman with speech and hearing impairment who gets violent occa-sionally, scratched Poovathanickal’s face in a fit of anger a few months ago. But the sister saw the incident as part of her mission.
“She beats and spits on us. But after some time, she would come and say, ‘Sister, sorry,’ and we forget our pain,” says the nun, who works in Sanjoe Bhawan (House of St. Joseph), a rehabilitation centre for women age 18 and older with various handicaps.
Sanjoe Bhawan is part of Sanjoepuram (City of St Joseph) Children’s Village in Chandpur, one of the few institutions in India that offer inclusive educa-tion. Poovathanickal serves there with 17 other nuns from four congregations, all members of the Syro-Malabar Church.
The village currently shelters 64 girls and women, ages 10-36, with disabilities, such as speech, vision and hearing impairment, cerebral palsy and developmental disorders. Some residents are orphans or children of prisoners.
The complex includes the Infant Jesus Senior Secondary School, where students from neighboring villages study with the Sanjoepuram children up to the 12th grade.
The school has 522 boys, all day students, and 368 girls, including 39 from Sanjoepuram.

The Latin-Rite dioceses of India will mark “Communio India” Sunday on November 29 (first Sunday of Advent) with the theme “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 13: 34). “This year we observe Communio India Sunday amidst the suffering and the challenges created by the Covid-19 pan-demic. Nevertheless, the missionary journey of the whole Church continues, despite all the challenges facing us, be-cause the Risen Lord accompa-nies us on our way,” said Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrão, President of Conference of Catholic Bishops’ of India (CCBI). “Communio India” is an initiative of the CCBI to assist all Dioceses and Religious Congregations working in rural and mission areas, in their pastoral ministry, said Fr Ste-phen Alathara, deputy secretary general.
The resources generated by Catholics will be used for poor communities in many parts of the country. “The aims of “Communio India” are to assist dioceses and religious congregations working in the missions; to build a culture of sharing among our people to express solidarity with the needy,” said Archbishop Ferrão.

A Jain businessman, who funded the publication of Bible reflections running to ten volumes eight years ago, died in Indore, Madhya Pradesh State.
Ajit Kumar Kasliwal passed away on November 19 after a prolonged period of illness. He was 84.
Father Alengaden says the Jain businessman was a sign of hope when India experiences tension and conflicts among followers of various religions. Kasaliwal not only learned about other faiths but motivated others to do the same, the priest adds.
“The root cause of these conflicts is prejudice and lack of understanding each other. An intense desire to learn about other faiths, especially the original source- the scriptures and the teachings contained in them- is essential to get liberated from prejudices and misunderstanding about the other faiths,” asserts Father Alengaden.

The Protestant Church of North India (CNI) has reinstated a bishop three months after it laicized him for breaking away and declaring his diocese autonomous. The CNI Synod, the church’s top decision-making body, on Nov. 19 decided to revoke its decision to laicize Bishop Basil B. Baskey of Chotanagpur Diocese in eastern India’s Jharkhand State. The Synod on Aug. 11 removed Bishop Baskey from office and withdrew his ordination as a priest and a bishop after an internal probe found the bishop guilty of acts of revolt and indiscipline. “The Synod has revoked its Aug. 11 decision and agreed to reinstate Bishop Baskey as the bishop of Chotanagpur Diocese,” said Suresh Jacob, a senior member of the Synod executive committee.

Pope Francis on November 19 transferred Bishop Anthony Poola of Kurnool to Hyderabad as its archbishop.
The Pope also accepted the resignation of Archbishop Thumma Bala of Hyderabad, who reached the bishops’ canonical retirement age of 75 in April 2019. Archbishop Bala headed the archdiocese for 9 years since 2011.
Bishop Poola was born on November 15, 1961, at Chindhukur, Andhra Pradesh. He joined the minor seminary in Kurnool and studied at St Peter’s Pontifical Major Semi-nary, Bangalore. He was ordained a priest on February 20, 1992. At the age of 46 he was appointed as the Bishop of Kurnool on February 8, 2008,’
He has served as chairman for Youth Commission Telugu Region, Scheduled Castes/Backward Classes Commission and Andhra Pradesh Social Service Society. He also served the Telugu Catholic Bishops’ Council as its secretary general and treasurer.
He was also the chairman of the Sikh Village Campus, secretariat for TCBC Priests Community.
He has completed 28 years as a priest and 12 years as a bishop, says a press release from Father Stephen Alathara, deputy secretary general of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India.

The Christian community of Assam joined social and political leaders to mourn the death of Tarun Gogoi, a former chief minister of the north-eastern Indian State. Gogoi, who was Assam chief minister for three terms died on November 23 while undergoing treatment at the Gauhati Medical College Hospital for post-Covid complications. He was 84.
The death was confirmed by Assam Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
The Christian community expresses “its deepest sorrow and offers its condolences at the sad demise” of Gogoi, says a condolence message from Allen Brooks, spokesperson of the Assam Christian Forum.

Pope Francis has dismissed from priesthood the former spokesperson of the Catholic Church in the central Indian State of Madhya Pradesh.
“Now, with regret and pain I wish to formally communicate to everyone that by an official decree from our Supreme Pontiff Pope Francis, dated 22 October 2020, Anand Muttungal (Joseph M.T) of the Archdiocese of Bhopal, has been dismissed in poenam (penalty) from the clerical state and dispensed from all his clerical obli-gations, including that of celibacy,” says a November 26 message from Archbishop Leo Cornelio of Bhopal.