A Catholic priest, who had gone beyond his priestly duties to fight illegal land grabbers and promote peace and communal harmony even at risk to his safety, died July 25 after a prolonged illness. Father Francis D’Britto of the western Indian Vasai diocese was known for his involvement in public movements such as the Harit (green) Vasai initiative to promote environmental sustainability and green practices. The death occurred at his home in Vasai, some 60 km north of Mumbai. He was 81. He was born December 4, 1942, to Marathi-speaking parents, in Girij, a tiny Vasai village. After studies in St. Pius, a Goregaon seminary, he was ordained a priest on December 23rd 1972, for the Bombay arch-diocese. He had also served as the spokesperson for Vasai diocese in the 2000s.

Seven Christians have been accused of violating the stringent anti-conversion law in two separate incidents in the northern Indian Uttar Pradesh state. Police arrested Pastor Ram Udeshy Sahani, Babulal Sahani and Vinod Kumar on July 14 in Maharajanj district. They were charged with converting a man by allegedly offering money and promising miraculous healing, according to a complaint lodged by his wife, Chanda, who was identified by only her first name. The police in Senduria village said the woman alleged in her complaint that her husband, who was identified by a single name, Anil, removed portraits of Hindu gods and goddesses from their home after his conversion. The three Christians were arrested but Babulal Sahani and Vinod Kumar were released on bail on July 16. “The police did not invoke the provisions of the anti-conversion law” against the two, said a lawyer dealing with their case. Four other Christians were accused of converting Hindu villagers in the Moradabad district by a leader of the Hindu group Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP or World Hindu Council). Police reportedly arrested two among them and were on the lookout for the two others. VHP local leader Pankaj Singh Pal registered the complaint at the Thakurdwara police station. He accused the Christians of converting Hindus by offering them “fridges, televisions, bicycles, motorcycles and sewing machines among other things” and “a cash reward of 25,000 rupees [about $300].” Pal alleged that those ready to become pastors were offered a monthly remuneration of 35,000 rupees and household expenses. The VHP leader further alleged that some 50-60 persons were already converted to Christianity and this had agitated the local Hindus. “Both cases were baseless and aimed at giving a negative image to Christians,” said Father Mathew from the Indian Missionary Society in Varanasi. Uttar Pradesh is India’s largest and most populous state. It is ruled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party. The state enacted a stringent law, the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Reli-gion Act, in 2021. “Anti-conversion cases are part of the right-wing conspiracy against Christians,” Father Anand Mathew of the Indian Missionary Society told. The priest said that the police and media in the state were being used to target the tiny Christian community in the state. Some 24 Christians were already put behind bars in Uttar Pra-desh for violating the anti-conversion law after the general election results were announced on June 4. Only six persons “had got bail,” said a Church leader helping them with legal matters. Christians make up a mere 0.18% of Uttar Pradesh’s more than 200 million people, most of them Hindus. However, the state tops in cases of violence against Christians in the country, according to published records.

A Catholic diocese has approached the top court of a central Indian state over a government order asking two of its schools to reimburse close 180 million rupees (some US$2.2 million) after accusing them of collecting exorbitant fees from students. The Jabalpur diocese in Madhya Pradesh approached the State High Court on July 16 “seeking a direction to quash the order from the [Jabalpur] district education officer,” said Father Davis George, diocesan vicar-general. The order is untenable and there is “no truth in it,” Father George told. The priest denied the Madhya Pradesh state education department’s claim that two diocesan schools, named after St. Aloysius, collected exorbitant student fees. The Catholic schools were told to reimburse nearly US$2.2 million after the management was accused of overcharging students in the past six years. The July 9 order named 10 private schools including four run by the Church of North India (CNI). The Protestant-run schools were also told to repay close to US$2.1 million. Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of tribal people in India. Christian schools are the most sought-after in Jabalpur, known as the cultural capital of Madhya Pradesh. This is the first time Christians are being told to reimburse the fees collected from students. The CNI’s Jabalpur diocese is also contemplating filing an appeal in court. “We are in consultation with lawyers,” said a CNI member who did not want to be named. The state is ruled by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The BJP is against missionary activities that benefit the tribal people and other poor sections of society, said a Church official. “We are targeted for providing quality education at an affordable rate,” he told on July 16.

Police in a central Indian state have begun investigating complaints that a Catholic school has been hurting the religious sentiments of its students by insisting on reciting prayers in English. “A case is registered against us for following the medium of instruction [English] in our school,” said Sister Rashmi Kuzhyil, vice principal of Vandana Convent School at Guna in Madhya Pradesh state. The school management and its principal Sister Catherine Vattoly are the prime accused in the complaint filed by the Akhila Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP or All India Students’ Council), the student body of the ruling pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). “It is a fabricated case,” Kuzhiyil told on July 23.
The English-medium school has 3,700 students and has been run by the Sisters of St. Elizabeth congregation for the past 50 years. It falls under the Sagar diocese and is a much sought-after school for Guna city residents. Kuzhiyil said that during the assembly on July 15, Vattoly found the students reciting prayers in Hindi instead of English. She stopped them and instructed them to follow the school’s medium of instruction and recite prayers in English. On July 22, around 50 activists from ABVP forcibly entered the school premises and began to shout slogans against the principal and school management. They also sought the immediate removal of Vattoly, alleging she “hurt the religious sentiments of Hindu students.” A few students later joined the protesters. “A police official informed us about the complaint, but we are yet to get its copy,” Kuzhiyil said. A district education official and others visited the school on July 23 and recorded statements from the students and staff members. “Unfortunately, a five-decade-old school is dragged into un-necessary controversy,” said Bishp James Athikalam.

Christians in a northern Indian state have sought police protection after right-wing Hindu groups allegedly threatened to accuse them of breaching a stringent anti-conversion law. In a petition submitted to the top policeman in Maharajganj district in northern Uttar Pradesh, Christians say their lives have been threatened. “We were forced to seek police protection as Bajarang Dal (Brigade of Lord Hanuman) activists continue to unleash violence against us by barging into our prayer meetings,” said Ram Lakhan, a petition signatory. Some 50 others who follow the teachings of Christ, but who have not converted to Christianity, also signed the petition submitted to the superintendent of police on July 23. They have accused Vivek Shrivastava, district president of the Bajarang Dal, and his associates of unleashing a reign of terror against Christians. They also claimed to possess video footage to back the allegations. Right-wing activists have assaulted Christians and followers of Christ, molested women, and damaged copies of the Bible, they said in the petition. Activists also allegedly threatened “to beat Christians one by one if they hold prayer meetings in the church or at their houses.” Uttar Pradesh is among 11 states in India where a draconian anti-conversion law is in force that criminalizes religious conversion from Hinduism to Christianity or Islam. Christians make up less than 1 percent of more than 200 million people in Uttar Pradesh. Most of the population are Hindus. India’s largest and most populous state is ruled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and right-wing Hindu groups like the Bajarang Dal and Vishva Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council). Uttar Pradesh ranks second in violence against Christians. The northern state witnessed 92 such incidents in the first half of this year out of 361 incidents reported across the country, according to the United Christian Forum, an ecumenical body that tracks atrocities against Christians in India.