Christian leaders in India have hailed three US lawmakers’ demand for an independent probe into the situation that led to the death of Jesuit activist Father Stan Swamy as a prisoner three years ago. Representative from California Juan Vargas, along with lawmakers Jim McGovern and Andre Carson, on July 6 introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives on the third anniversary of Father Swamy’s death. The 84-year-old Swamy died in a private hospital in Mumbai, in western Maharashtra state, as an under-trial prisoner on July 5, 2021.  He was accused of associating with terrorists aiming to destabilize the nation and being part of a plan to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “The US lawmakers are justified in their demand” for an independent investigation into the situation that led to the death of the priest, said Father Jacob G Palakkappilly, spokesperson of the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council, a regional body based in southern Kerala. Father Palakkappilliy told that the allegations against the priest must be probed to clear his name. Christian leaders say the aged priest was arrested to silence his criticism that the policies of the Modi government ignored the welfare of tribal and poor in the country.   Swamy opposed a move to amend India’s stringent Forest Act, which safeguards the interests of forest dwellers. He accused the government led by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of amending the law to help industrialists. According to the US resolution, Swamy worked to raise awareness among Adivasi (tribal) people about their rights. “Father Stan dedicated his life to giving a voice to the voiceless. He was a tireless advocate for the rights of the indigenous Adivasi people,” Vargas noted in the resolution. “Yes, there should be a probe into the allegations against Father Swamy,” stressed Sister Helen Tresa, a lawyer in the high court in Jharkhand. Swamy, based in Jharkhand, filed several cases to protect the rights of tribal people, who were illegally jailed after labeling them as sympathizers of outlawed Maoist rebels.