National

Jhabua nuns’ gangrape: absconding accused arrested after 21 years

Twenty one years after four nuns were raped by 26 persons in the Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh, a 45-year-old absconding accused in the case has been nabbed, police said on March 5. Kalu Limji was arrested from Aamba village in the district the previous day, a police official said. In September 1998, the accused, […]

Arunachal women pray for jailed Mother Teresa nun

Women in a remote village in Arunachal Pradesh marked the International Women’s Day by praying for the release of jailed Missionaries of Charity nun in Jharkhand State. “We know that Sister Concelia (Baxla) is inno-cent. She is in jail for false case by people with vested interests to show the Church in poor light,” said […]

Bishop hospitalized after attack by parishioners

A Catholic bishop was reportedly hospitalized in Tamil Nadu, southern India, after a group of Catholics attacked him over a land dispute. Police in Marthandam in Kannyakumari district have registered a case against 58 people for attacking Bishop Jerome Dhas Varuvel of Kuzhithurai and a security guard, Tamil newspaper the Daily Thanti reported on March […]

Indian Catholics want Pope Francis to go beyond comments about abuse

Weeks after Pope Francis’ open admission of the issue of clergy abuse of nuns, reaction to his remarks remains muted among Catholics in India, where a progressive group of religious had raised the problem three years ago. They urge the Pope not to stop with identifying the problem but to act firmly against abusers, especially […]

Religious minorities in India ‘attacked with impunity’

Religious and ethnic minorities in India continue to face violence at the hands of Hindu groups that support the federal government led by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), according to a new report by Human Rights Watch. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has failed to prevent or credibly investigate growing mob attacks on religious […]

CATHOLIC RUN INSTITUTIONS IN GARO HILLS REMAIN SHUT

Catholic run schools and colleges from all over Garo Hills on February 20 remained closed as a mark of protest and condemnation against the frequent attacks on Catholic Parishes and institutions, by miscreants in some days ago. The shutdown protest was also aimed at demanding from concerned authorities the immediate arrests of the culprits. As many […]

Indian Franciscans commit to promote triple dialogue

The annual assembly of the Association of Franciscan Families of India (AFFI) ended on Feb 22 with a yearlong plan to revive the charism of their founder Saint Francis of Assisi. In the four-day event — attended by generals, provincials and other major superiors of Franciscans in India — marked the 800th anniversary of the meeting […]

GRAHAM STAINES FILM

Marking 20th year of the gruesome murder of an Australian missionary and his two young sons in Odisha’s sleepy outback wilderness of Manoharpur in Keonjhar district, Skypass Entertainment released its first film on February 1 in the US. The 112-minute film will be released in India in March and its Australian release is slated for […]

Eviction-facing Indian Catholics to fight Muslim charity’s claims

Goans oppose tourism project near 16th century basilica