World Yoga Day proved a big hit across India on June 21 as Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged the nation to revel in and promote its culture but it was largely ignored in Christian-dominated Mizoram State. While many Catholics in other parts of the country joined the mass group exercises organized that on June 21, some religious groups in the north-eastern state dubbed the event “anti-Christian,” according to local media.

“Ours is a Christian state. We cannot accept yoga because we see it as a part of Hinduism,” said Vanlalruata, president of the People’s Representation for Identity and Status of Mizoram (Prism), a newly floated political party. “We refuse to practise yoga and we will keep opposing this celebration in our state,” he added.

Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on June 28 announced that his government would repeal the anti-conversion law the north-eastern Indian state passed 40 years ago.

“The anti-conversion law could undermine secularism and is probably targeted towards Christians,” said Khandu while assuring he would introduce steps to repeal the draconian law in the next assembly session to prevent its misuse in future by irresponsible officials.

Khandu was speaking at the tenth death anniversary of Prem Bhai, a Benedictine missionary who is considered the “Saint Paul” of Arunachal Pradesh. He endured repeated arrest, imprisonment, beatings and wore disguises to evangelize in the north-eastern state. Born Henry Gaikwad in the western Indian State of Maharashtra, the missionary was popularly known as Prem Bhai (loving brother). He died on June 28, 2008, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, following a heart attack the previous day. He was 45 at the time of his death. He was buried in Banderdewa, a village near the Arunachal Pradesh capital of Itanagar.

The chief minister said although he had not heard of Prem Bhai earlier, the testimonies of many about the Christian missionary’s efforts to promote communal harmony, peace and love among the people of Arunachal Pradesh have impressed him.

Khandu, 38, expressed concern about the persecution Christians faced because of the infamous law against conversion in Arunachal Pradesh, especially when the state was a territory directly ruled by the federal government. The Arunachal Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act or the Anti-Conversion Law was passed by the state Assembly in 1978. It says no person should convert or attempt to convert, either directly or otherwise, any person from one religious faith to any other religious faith by the use of force or by inducement or by any fraudulent means nor should any person abet any such conversion.

The chief minister expressed surprise that the discriminatory law against Christians had not been repealed, even though it was not being enforced. He said that in the future there could be a chief minister, chief secretary or director general of police who could have malicious intent, to misuse the Act. “Any misuse of the law leading to torture of people could trigger large-scale violence in the state and could break Arunachal into pieces,” the chief minister warned.

The amendment allows the state government to alter a five-year-old federal law that aims to protect the rights of farmers and indigenous people when acquiring their land for state development purposes. Protests and sit-in-demonstrations have been held in several locations around the state following media reports that President Ram Nath Kovind had agreed to the amendments. “The approach of the current government is more pro-rich rather than strengthening the poor,” said Auxiliary Bishop Telespore Bilung of Ranchi, who like other Christian leaders, believes the move dilutes a stricter federal law. The amendment allows the state government to alter a five-year-old federal law that aims to protect the rights of farmers and indigenous people when acquiring their land for state development purposes.

Nearly 20 opposition parties, including Congress and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (Jharkhand Liberation Front), have demanded the state scrap the amendments and conducted a sit-in protest in front of the Ranchi residence of state governor Draupadi Murmu, the representative of the Indian president on June 25. Protesters also gathered outside district headquarters across the state. If the government fails to scrap the move, the opposition plans to hold a state-wide shutdown on July 5. Meanwhile the ruling pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party has been conducting its own campaigns and demonstrations to garner support for the changed federal law.

Church leaders have welcomed a big reduction in India’s maternal mortality rate, with nearly 12,000 fewer women dying during childbirth in 2016.

They said the improvement was the result of a joint effort by government and private health workers.  India’s maternal mortality rate (MMR) registered a 22% reduction in three years. The rate declined to 130 deaths per 100,000 births in 2014-16 from 167 deaths in 2011-13, according to data released by the Registrar General of India on June 6. This meant India saved the lives of nearly 12,000 pregnant women in 2016, UNICEF said in a statement analyzing the data.

“India has shown impressive progress in reducing maternal deaths, with nearly 1,000 fewer women now dying of pregnancy related complications each month in India as compared to 2013,” UNICEF’s India representative Yasmin Ali Haque said.

The result is “very encouraging for us all because the church is at the forefront of the health sector in the country,” said Father Mathew Peru-mpil, secretary of the health office of the Indian Catholic Bishops’ Conference.

He said one reason for the achievement was that people were made aware about facilities by the government and privately run health centres.

The government has introduced several schemes to provide free medicine and health checks for pregnant women in state facilities. Federal schemes are also available to ensure healthy food for pregnant women and newly born babies and their mothers. The World Health Organization (WHO) said the government’s efforts to improve access to high-quality maternal services and increased emphasis on women’s education are some of the reasons behind India’s ground-breaking progress.

A Catholic college’s decision to ban Muslim girl students from wearing hijab sparked protest outside the college campus on June 25.

St Agnes College, Mangalore, has ordered the Muslim students not to wear hijab in the classroom saying the headdress does not conform to the college’s dress code.

In a press statement Principal Sister Jeswina said St Agnes is a “minority institution” catering to women’s education and it respects every student. But the college rules do not permit “headscarves in the classroom.”

The faithful should work together to solve the issues being faced by the archdiocese, Syro-Malabar Church Archbishop Cardinal Mar George Alencherry has said.
“We should reach unity through faith and try to become matured,” he said while delivering introductory message at the installation ceremony of Bishop Mr Jacob Manathodath as the Apostolic Administrator of Ernakulam-Angamaly Archdiocese at the St Mary’s Cathedral Basilica.